Rocketman and the Deadman
by FortheLoveofWrestling
Summary: Complete, unless I can think of something else to write. Trials and tribulations of a relationship between The Undertaker and The Brian Kendrick. Slash. Sort of. Slash-esqe. It's my very first attempt at writing anything here. Be kind, REVIEW!
1. Chapter 1

AN: Don't own. Obviously.  
_I've been a LOOONG time lurker of this site and just recently started reviewing and such. And now, I'm ready to give it a go, I think.  
This is my first attempt at writing anything. Haha. So, please be kind, but please review. I'd like to know whether I should even finish this.  
Thanks for reading. Oh, and I apologize for the weird time line of the writing._

-FortheLoveofWrestling

* * *

"You better take it easy on those wings there, rocketman," Mark pointed out.

Brian chuckled, "Sorry, I've been sick the past couple of days and haven't had much to eat. I'm starving."

Mark couldn't help but smile. _Smile_. That was one thing he couldn't help but do when he thought of Brian. The kid was so goofy.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Before the draft a while back, when he and Paul were moved to RAW, they had gotten a chance to get to know each other a little. It started out with Brian asking Mark if he could watch his match that night and maybe let him know what he thought about it, what he thought of his skills in the ring. He was so shy and almost seemed nervous to ask him. And that only made him look cuter.

Of course, Mark watched the match and was quite impressed. After the taping, Mark waited for Brian in the parking garage. When he saw Brain walking out of the building, with Paul and a couple of other guys. He asked him if he wanted to grab a bite to eat and discuss the match. Nervously, he accepted. Mark was always honest when people sought his opinion, and never did he recall a time when Mark made this kind of offer to someone who wanted his opinion. They went out, grabbed a bite and after a little small talk, got down to his match. Even then, Mark couldn't help but smile as Brian fidgeted in his seat the whole time.

"...like someone let off a rocket in the ring. You're really something else, you know?" Mark told him.

With a goofy, crooked smile on his face, Brian looked down into his plate and all he could manage was "yeah?"

"Yeah. Keep doing what you're doing and keep learning, you'll set you're career off like a rocket too," Mark smiled back at him.

"Thanks," he said as he played with a fry. Goofy smile still on his face.

Mark continued to watch his matches, and always had something to let him know about. He was even hanging out by the ring whenever he and Paul had a practice, every once in a while he'd jump in the ring with them and showing, and learning, a few things.

A couple weeks later though, Kendrick and London were drafted to Raw.

"We're going to get buried over there," Brian told Paul.

"I know, but what are we gonna do about it?" he replied.

"Not worry about it, that's what," both guys turned around to see Mark walking up to them. "They're moving you guys for a reason, so have trust that these knucklehead writers have something in store." Both men nodded.

Paul looked down at his phone, he read the text and excused himself for a minute. Saying something about a missing shoe. Mark and Brain stood there until finally...

"I guess I better start getting my stuff ready to go," Brain said. "Listen Mark, thanks for everything these past couple of weeks. You have no idea how much Paul and I appreciate it."

"No problem, Brian. Don't go letting Shawn erase all my work either, okay?" Brian chuckled and said bye, and just as he had turned to leave he felt Mark's hand on his arm. "Just be the rocketman you are and you'll be okay. They notice you, you just gotta keep going at it the way you do, alright? You guys will be fine." Brain nodded and thanked him again.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Although they had spoken a few times since Brian came back to Smackdown!, he was just as shy and nervous as he was the first time he asked Mark to watch his match. Mark chalked it up to being that he was a little nervous because Paul was still on Raw and he was here with no partner. Things weren't looking too good for Paul over there either, that might have been why he was so quiet and shy; he didn't want to draw any attention to himself, just in case.

One night after a show, Brian was left in the locker room with only his gym bag and the clothes he had on. Some rib someone or other was pulling left him with out his stuff and no ride back to the hotel.

As Mark was walking out of his own room, he noticed Brian, sitting on one of the big cases scattered around the arena. He stopped just behind him and said...

"Hey, kid."

Brian turned around and found himself looking straight into the Deadman's eyes. Not as bad as some might think.

"Hey, Mark."

"What are you still doing here? I heard all your friends laughing like a bunch of hyenas outside my locker room earlier. I thought maybe you all had some big night planned or something," Mark said as Brian's face turned into a frown. _Hm, he's even cute when he frowns._

"Yeah, well I think maybe _they_ had some fun plans. Which included leaving me here stranded with nothing and no ride," he said.

"Oh. I see, rib gone wrong, huh?" Brain nodded. "Well if you need a ride, i'm on my way out."

"Are you sure? I don't want to ruin any of your plans or anything," Brian asked.

Mark laughed, "Kid, all I have planned for tonight is an uncomfortable hotel bed and some Law and Order reruns, so come on."

With a pat of the back, Brian looked at Mark, and there it was again: that goofy smile.

The car ride to the hotel was mostly silent other than a few comments of the usual small talk.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Mark's POV  
__In the hotel hallway._

"Hey, thanks for the ride Mark. I really appreciate it."

"Don't worry about, just make sure to get your stuff back because if Vince finds out you don't have your gear, he's gonna have a fit."

_I shouldn't have said that. What if he worries about Vince on his case now?_

"Yeah, I know. I'm sure someone has it stashed away somewhere."

_Guess this is when I say bye and leave._

"Alright, well, I guess i'll see you around tomorrow. Goodnight."

"Hey, since we don't have to be at the arena until the evening, you want to catch lunch or something?"

_Wow. How did this happen?_

"Uh, yeah, sure. Sounds good."

_First it's like he's afraid to talk to me, and now he's asking to hang out?_

"Cool. Thanks again for the ride, Mark. Goodnight."

_God, that smile._

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Brian's POV_

_Wow. He actually agreed to lunch. I thought for sure he was going to make up some excuse about being busy or having to go to some meeting.  
__Well, he did ask if I needed a ride. Why was I upset at him in the first place? I came back to Smackdown! and he's talked to me a few times. What was I being immature about?_

Brian flopped down into the bed. Being careful not to wake his sleeping roommate. He turned on the TV, making sure the volume was turned down though. As he was flipping through the channels, he stopped on Raw. He kept it there, even though it was in spanish. At least it was something decent he could fall asleep to.

_Oh yeah. That's why I was upset. I was starting to think he really liked me. I mean, why would he just take me on as a charity and want to help me out? I was really excited, it's one thing to have him talk to me about it, but to actually make an effort into helping me was something special. I was afraid he might catch on to my crush for him though, or maybe I was hoping he did. _

_Either way, it doesn't matter. After the draft, I went to Raw and he didn't even care enough to call or email. At the least I thought maybe he cared about me as a wrestler and he wanted to help me succeed. Guess not._

_But it's not like he's avoiding me or anything now. If anything, I was avoiding him. Maybe I should ask?_

And with that final thought, Brian fell asleep.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Mark's POV_

_God, that smile is something else. It's killing me how cute and goofy he looks sometimes._

_At least this was a good sign, right? Maybe him asking to go to lunch will get things going with our relationship. Friendship._

Mark laid down on his uncomfortable bed and turned on the TV, he didn't share a room with anyone so volume was no concern.

_Of course, nothing on. _

_Wonder what the rocketman is doing? What the hell? He's probably sleeping. Why do you even care, pervert? _He tried to shake the thoughts and questions running in his mind.

_That smile though._

_I wonder what made him come out of his shell tonight? Maybe he just needed a ride?_

_Man, what in the world is going on with me? I thought maybe there might be a chance that he liked me, but that was back before the draft last year. Now it seemed like all he wanted to do was avoid me. I'd start a conversation and then as soon as it started something popped up and he had to go. At the least I thought maybe he just didn't want me poking into his wrestling again. That's fine. Couldn't we just talk? Weren't we friends? ... Well, I guess a friend would have talked to him sometime in the time he was over on Raw. _

_Whatever. He seems to be coming around. Maybe i'll ask him what has been bothering him these past couple of weeks._

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"You ready to go?"

"Yeah, let's get going."

Mark and Brian headed out of the hotel lobby and into the parking garage. Every so often though, one could feel the other's eyes on him. When they reached the car Mark asked if maybe he wanted to drive.

"Yeah?... Sure."

"Just don't kill me or anything. You do know how to drive right?"

"Yes, I know how to drive," Brian said as he flashed Mark a quick smile.

"Since i'm driving, that means i'm in charge of the radio right?"

"As long as it isn't anything I don't like."

Brian reached over and plugged in his iPod. "How about this?" he giggled.

"Now _that_ is music," Mark laughed as he listened to his theme song. "Why in the world is this on your iPod?" he asked.

"I like it." This time it was Mark who flashed his smile.

_Cute smile_ Brian thought.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"You better take it easy on those wings there, rocketman," Mark pointed out.

Brian chuckled, "Sorry, I've been sick the past couple of days and haven't had much to eat. I'm staaarving." He made a show of wiping his face and gently placing the wet nap on top of the small mountain of napkins he had accumulated on the table.

Mark couldn't help but smile. _This kid is so goofy. He's acting like he does when he's with his friends. That's a good sign. Maybe he doesn't see me as some old guy trying to tell him what to do with his work. Maybe he's starting to see me as a friend again._

After lunch and a round of basketball at the adjoined arcade, Mark and Brian headed back to the hotel to get ready for the night's show.

They stopped in the hallway, in front of Brian's door, where they had the night before.

"Have you gotten a chance to check out my new gimmick?" Brian asked, almost as if he already knew a 'Not yet' was coming.

"Yeah, I have. It's pretty good. Reminds me of Shawn, Hayes and Brian Pillman- all rolled into to one little rocket." Mark said.

"Really? Wow. Big shoes to fill."

"You don't need to fill any shoes. Just find your right size." Mark looked at Brian and noticed that he looked especially happy.

"What are you so happy about all of a sudden?"

"I-I didn't think you had really noticed my character or anything, that's all."

"Why wouldn't I? You're out there stealing the show, it's hard not to."

"I'm glad you noticed." Brian mumbled and hung his head.

Mark reached over and tilted his head back up. "Hey, there's no need for an attitude like that. You get a great response from the crowd, some hate you and there's some who love the new you, but it's a good reaction either way. I'm not the only one who has noticed. I know it probably seems like nothing is coming out they way you want, but believe me. People are noticing. And it's about damn time." Another smile from both men.

By this time, neither one of them noticed that Mark had Brian's hand in his. Brian finally looked down and pulled his hand away. Instantly missing whatever it was that they didn't notice to begin with. Mark looked down and then met Brian's eyes. He also already missed whatever it was.

"I'm sorry, Brian. I-I didn't realize I..."

"It's okay."

A moment.

"I better let you go get ready."

"Yeah, better get going."

Another moment.

"Listen kid, I don't know if i'm reading too much into any of this, but if there is anything you ever want to talk about, you can come to me, if you need to."

"Actually. There is something I wanted to talk to you about," he chuckled, shaking his head, "now more than ever."

"Oh." was all Mark could muster. He was sure he was just reading too much, he was sure it was only wishful thinking on his part. "Okay."

"Are you busy tonight? After the show, I mean." Brian asked.

"Not anymore," Mark smirked.

Brian gave him a half smile. "Alright. I'll call you after the show, if that's okay?"

"Yeah, that's fine. I'll talk to you then, I guess." Mark shuffled around left.

"Bye." Brian managed to say. _Hopefully I don't make a fool of myself and don't go ruining what's starting to be a good friendship._


	2. Chapter 2

AN: Ugh. I wrote this hoping I would like it as much as I did the first, but didn't work out that well. But still here it is.  
Also, sorry again for the sometimes weird timeline. I don't know why I write that why. Thanks to **TheVampireLucinda** and **Ashura77** for the confidence boost!  
To everyone else, review, yeah? And critics are welcome! THANKS!

-FortheloveofWrestling

* * *

The ride to the hotel wasn't anything awkward, maybe a little tense, but not as awkward as they had been before. They were both starting to feel comfortable around each other, after the past couple of days. Mark gave a quiet sigh, hoping that whatever level of comfort and friendship they were building wasn't going to be undone by whatever it was they were going to be talking about. On the other side of him though, Brian was feeling a bit of conflict over the situation. He was quite amazed at how easily they fell back into their friendship. It wasn't his closest friendship, but he could feel how easily they got along and knew that unless something happened to change it, they probably would end up as pretty close friends. Was he really willing to lose whatever friendship they were starting to have in order to ask a couple of, now, somewhat dumb questions.

Mark looked over to him and asked, "You going to stay in here all night or what?" having already parked the car almost a minute before.  
Startled Brian looked around and said, "No, just thought I would enjoy the beauty of the parking lot."  
Mark smiled. "That's enough beauty for tonight."  
"I don't know about that," Brian said as he opened the door and got out.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the elevator, Mark looked over to Brian and tried to figure out what he could possibly want to talk about.

_Something about his career or his gimmick. Why would he talk to me about anything else? Sure we're getting along better, but still that's all it is I'm sure. Wow. It's like nothing changed for the most part, like we picked up where we left off. _Mark thought to himself.

"I don't want to drop any hints or anything, but I do share a room and we may not have much privacy for long."  
"We can go to my room. We won't be bothered there. People know better than to bother me." Mark said. As they both laughed the elevator stopped and again they we're both getting butterflies.

Brian went to his room to put his stuff away. Mark went to his room and put his stuff away as well. All of a sudden, he felt very nervous. After putting his gym bag down, he noticed a couple of shiny objects on the bedside table and smiled. As soon as he did though, the nerves came back. After pacing the room for a few minutes, he grabbed a water from the fridge and laid down on the bed.

_We're just going to talk about work or something. He's probably a little nervous because of the stuff going on with Paul. Then why am I getting so nervous? _

_Knock. _

_Whatever it is he sure doesn't want to waste time getting to it._

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Brian's POV_

_Man, I hope this wasn't a mistake. I really don't want to screw this up. I can't. These past couple of days have been great, like nothing's changed, we started where we left off. What does it matter if he didn't call or email. Ugh. But what about earlier? Why did he grab my hand, why did I feel lost when he let go?  
Might as well go for it. _

_Knock._

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mark opened the door and saw Brian standing there.

_Please don't make a fool of yourself, Mark. _

Mark stepped to the side and said "Hey, come on in.'

Brian said thanks and then walked in and went to the table at the far end of the room and sat down. Mark asked if he wanted a drink or anything, Brian said no thanks and Mark moved to the chair across from Brian.

"I almost changed my mind about coming over."  
"Why?"  
"I...I didn't want to ruin anything just because I was being immature."  
"Alright kid, you've lost me."  
"That's what I'm afraid of."

Mark gave a him a look of question.

"Something's been bothering me. It's kind of been with me for a while, but hit me harder when I came back to Smackdown." he sighed.

"To get to the point, I just wanted to know why you went to all of the trouble of helping me and Paul before, and then when we were moved to Raw, it's like you didn't even care anymore. I didn't understand how you went from, what I thought was actual interest in me to not caring enough to email me or something. Not even once to see how things were going for me over there. And you didn't even talk to me when we were doing a Super show or anything. I know that _I_ wanted to call you and talk to you, but i'm just Brian Kendrick, mid-card jobber. I didn't want to bother you if you didn't really want to talk to me." Brian paused for a second and continued

"When I came back to Smackdown!, and you started to talk to me again, like nothing ever changed, it really confused me. I wasn't sure what to think."

Brian had to stop. He could feel himself being worked up and losing control of his emotions. Saying the words aloud somehow made them mean and hurt even more.

Mark looked at Brian, not really knowing what to say, knowing there really wasn't anything he could say.

"Brian, I..." _sigh_.

"Brian, i'm sorry. I know it may not really mean much, but I am. I'm not really sure what I can say to you other than that. I don't know why I didn't call to see how you were doing, but it's not like I forgot about you. I thought about you more than I thought I really would."

This time it was Brian who sent a confused look.

"Brian, I wasn't sure how you felt about me then, I figured that I was just someone who would help you out because that's all you were interested in. And that was okay with me because I know you're worth it, but after just a few days with you, I knew that telling myself I was just sticking around because I wanted to help you was a lie. It was more than that, I wanted it to be more than that."

Brian looked up at Mark with something in his eyes. Mark swore it was hope, or maybe fear.

"After that first night you asked me to watch your match, after dinner, I pretty much knew that that wasn't all I could leave it at. I wanted more. A friendship or something, I don't know. And those few weeks we were starting to get a little closer as friends, and then you got shipped off to Raw."

"Well, why didn't you bother to call me or email me. If you really did want to be my friend than you would have, even just to see how I was doing." Brian said.

"I don't know. Maybe because I didn't really think you would care either way. Whatever it was that I felt then, I figured it was just on my end. It was only wishful thinking on my part. There couldn't be anything else you would want from me. I guess I thought that you were just looking for advice and all. You had plenty of that on Raw. You didn't need me." Mark admitted, with a sudden bit of pain and sadness.

"...But I wanted you." Brian whispered. Mark barely heard it, but he did.

After that both men just sat there. Neither one of them really sure of what to say.

Finally, Mark had to do something to ease the tension. He got up and with Brian's eyes following him, he walked into the bedroom. _What is he doing? _

He came back out holding something in his hand.  
"Here. I forgot I was holding them for you." he said as he held open his hand.

Two shiny toy cars that Brian had gotten using tickets from the arcade.

He reached out, put his hand over Mark's and let it rest there for a moment longer than it needed to be until he finally he pulled back his hand with the two cars inside.

"There it is again," Brian chuckled, more to himself than to Mark.  
"What's that?" Mark asked.  
"This weird, funky feeling I had earlier."  
"Oh, yeah. Me too."  
Brian looked up at him and asked "What?"  
"That funky feeling. Wasn't sure what it was, but I think it's slowly getting a little clearer."

For the first time in the whole night, Brian had that goofy grin on his face.

"There it is again." Mark joked.  
"What are you talking about?"  
"That goofy smile of yours." Mark explained.  
"Goofy?" Brian laughed.  
"Yeah, just like you. Goofy."  
"And here I thought you were being nice," he said with an obviously forced frown.  
"I am, I love that goofy smile. I'm starting to like your frown too," Mark pointed out, "it's hard to find something I don't like about you."  
Brian smiled.

After that there was another silence, but this one was quite different though. It was a comfortable silence.

_Yawn. _

"Maybe you should get back. It's getting late and you probably have an early flight, kid," Although he knew it was true, Mark really didn't want Brian to leave. "Come on, i'll walk you to your room."  
"You don't have to do that, Mark."  
"I want to."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Mark's POV _

_Why didn't you say anything else?_

When Brian stopped in front of his door and said thanks, with rubber arms, he reached up and gave Mark a quick hug.

_Man, that had to be the best hug i've ever had. His body was a perfect fit to mine._

_Fool. You should have spoken up. It's obvious he likes you, isn't it? Or maybe he just wants to be friends. But when I tried to give him some sort of hint that I was on the verge of falling for him, all he did was make a joke or smile. _

_Not that his smile isn't worth it. As far as i'm concerned he could get away with murder just so long as he flashed me that smile._

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Smackdown! guys had the next couple of days off so it wasn't until after that Mark was able to get a chance to talk to him again.

"Hey rocketman"  
"Huh? Oh, hi."

_Hm. He doesn't seem to be the same Brian I talked to a few days ago._

"How was your break?" Mark asked, wanting to see where the conversation would go, if anywhere.  
"It was okay. Nothing special."  
"Oh." _pause_. "Listen I was wondering if you wanted to hang out later."

_Pause._

"I'd like that, but I, uh..." Brian stumbled, pretending to look for something in his bag. "I already promised Matthew that I'd go out to some restaurant with him and a few other guys."

"Oh... okay." Mark looked down the hallway, trying to do something other than feel embarrassed and hurt. "I guess I'll just see you around then."

"Yeah, I'm sorry."

"No, don't worry about it."

Brian grabbed his bag and put it over his shoulder, "I better get going. See ya' around," he turned around and left Mark standing there.

_He has friends. Doesn't mean he isn't interested still. I mean, we pretty much both admitted to it the other night. Then why in the hell is he acting all skittish around me again?_ Mark thought as he stood there watching him leave.

As Brian walked away all he could think was why he needed to get away from Mark.

_Why in the world did I just lie to him? We talked about everything already. Why am I still so scared?_

* * *

_Drama_, much? I like how because of my circular writing, this chapter doesn't do anything but pretty much start you back where you left off. Haha, sorry about that.


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Chapter 3 is here. I sure did crank these out pretty quick.  
(Probably because I spent a lot of my time at school writing, via my cell phone. But my professors are boring, so it's like whatever.)  
Just an FYI, I tend to not do a whole lot of editing, in my work, so there might be mistakes strewn about.  
PLEASE REVIEW!

Thanks,  
FortheloveofWrestling.

* * *

Things continued like that the next day. Everyone was at the arena early, besides the normal show, they also had a photo shoot for the magazine and for a pay-per-view.

Mark mostly spent the time with Glen, Ken (Kennedy) and Paul but more often than not he spent his time wondering why whenever he entered a room, Brian had to leave.

The four guys, feeling the hunger in their stomachs, went over to catering to have lunch. As they walked in, Mark saw Brian holding a tray and on his way to find a seat.

_Good. Now he can't run off._

The four men got their food and sat down at a table. Excusing himself, knowing he'd better hurry to talk to him or he'd leave, Mark walked over to Brian.

Seeing Mark walking towards him, Brian put down his fork and waited.

"You saw me and didn't run. Aren't I lucky?" Mark joked.  
Brian gave him a half smile and began to apologize, "i'm sorry Mark. It's just that..."  
He was cut off by Mark who put his hand over Brian's.  
"Don't apologize." he said as he ran his thumb across his hand, without really realizing he was doing so.  
"I know that you never _officially_ put it on the table, but I was wondering if I could talk to you," he asked, although he wasn't quite sure why. He did want to talk to him about what was going on, but he hadn't planned on acting on his curiosity.  
Caught a bit off guard, Brian just nodded his head.  
"How about at 3p.m.? In my locker room?"  
"Okay." Brian choked out.  
"Okay, i'll see you then."

Mark got up, and for the third time, and felt lost after losing contact with Brian's body.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Brian's POV_

_Great. He's going to ask why you lied to him and why you have been avoiding him._

Brian looked down at his phone and had to chuckle to himself.

_2p.m._

He figured it would take him the hour to get the feeling back into his legs after the feeling of Mark's hand in his gave him.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Mark's POV_

_What are you going to ask him? Why did you even ask him to come by so we could talk? There's really nothing to talk about. Ask him why he keeps running from you. Then tell him you're very much interested in him, but if he isn't, than you're more than happy to be just friends.  
_  
Mark nodded in agreement with himself.

_Ha. Too bad that's a lie. I could be his friend, if he'd let me, but I want more than that. I can't deny it anymore. Not after the conversation we had before._

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Brian knocked on the door and stood there, hands in his pockets, a little afraid of what waited on the other side of the door.

"It's open." he heard from inside.

Slowly, he opened the door. He looked around and saw Mark pulling out the gear from his bag.  
"Have a seat," Mark offered, motioning to the small couch. Brian moved towards it and with a small sigh took a seat.

Mark moved to the couch too and sat down beside him.

He noticed how Brian looked sitting next to him. He was fidgeting around nervously. With another sigh Mark looked down at the carpet. _Here it goes._

"Thanks for stopping by. I uh, just wanted to ask..." he sighed again. He was at a loss, he didn't know what to say, he knew a million things he needed to say, but nothing presented itself to him. _Just do it._

"You are ridiculously cute, you know that?"  
Brian turned his head and looked at Mark, like he was crazy. "Huh?"

"You are. And it's killing me." Mark said as he looked back at him. "To be honest with you, I wasn't sure why I asked you here. I think, more than anything I just needed you to know that I," Mark stopped asking himself one final time if he really wanted to put himself out there, not knowing what the reaction would be. "I really like you, and I think i'm falling for you faster than I probably shoud be." Mark moved his eyes to Brian's, hoping he saw anything other than fear or anger.  
"Me too." he heard Brian whisper.

Suddenly, Mark felt a load of pressure taken off his shoulders.

Feeling brave, he reached over and grabbed Brian's hand in his, after a moment he asked, "Well then what are we going to do about this new situation?"  
Feeling a bit dizzy all of a sudden, Brian knew his words were a mistake.

"Nothing." Brian said as he stood up. To no good use really because Mark stood up right after him, still holding his hand.  
"Why? What do you mean 'nothing'?"  
"Because."  
"That isn't an answer, Brian." he knew it had come out harsher than he would have liked but now he was even more confused than he was before.  
"I can't explain it, Mark. Look, i'm sorry for acting the way I have been. I was scared. But please, I promise that I won't act so immature like that anymore. I just didn't know how to avoid all of this." Brian said, trying to figure out how to get out of there before Mark convinced him he was wrong. Knowing that with every minute they held hands, the urge to run out lessened.

Confused, Mark decided to do the only thing he could do. "Remember that night when we talked, and that feeling we both said we had?"  
"Yeah, i'm sor..."  
Before he could finish, Mark had his lips on Brian's.

The kiss was soft and unforced. Mark did nothing but let his lips linger on Brian's.

Finally, Mark moved his lips away and laid his forehead against Brian's and asked "Did you feel that?"  
With closed eyes, all Brian could manage was a nod.  
"Then why won't you let it happen?"  
Afraid of how intense of a feeling he had with such an innocent kiss, he pushed himself away from Mark. "Because I just can't, Mark. _We_ can't."

Feeling his eyes moisten, he quickly turned away from Mark and said "I won't let them look at you differently."  
"Brian..." and as his tears threatened to fall, Brian opened the door and walked out.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Brian's POV_

_I shouldn't have done this. I'm just hurting him. I need to leave. Why did I wait so long to leave? I shouldn't have come. Showing up was a mistake. It doesn't matter how either one us feel, it can't happen._

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Mark's POV_

_Why didn't he stay? He didn't have to explain anything. And nothing was going to happen between us. Why couldn't he just stay? I didn't even think he'd want to see me, but he still came to see me. What's going on in the Rocketman's head?_

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Knock._

Mark was in no mood to talk to anyone right now, he had a huge headache over what had happened with Brian. Having already thrown himself into bed, wanting to just sleep and forget what had happened, he pulled the blanket off of him to answer the door.

Looking through the peephole, he was surprised to see who he was looking at in the hallway. He opened the door and heard Brian say "I'm sorry, Mark."

Mark stood there looking at him. He wasn't sure what to say and he was afraid to say anything, thinking it wouldn't come out the way he wanted.

Finally Brian spoke again. "I'm sorry, Mark. Please don't be mad at me." with that last sentence Mark sighed, he felt bad that whatever it was that was going through his mind, must have really been eating away at him.

As Mark started to say something, Brian cut him off with a kiss. Again, it wasn't very passionate, just innocent and cautious. Neither one of them wanted to make a mistake that would certainly ruin things between them.

After they pulled away, Mark stood still, afraid that if maybe he moved or blinked, Brian might turn around and walk away like he had before.

Brian stood there as well. Pushing down the fear that he might have just made a huge mistake.

"Can I come in?"  
The question shook Mark out of his daze. He moved out of the way to let him in and as Brian walked in, he grabbed Mark's hand. He waited for Mark to close the door and then led them both to the couch in the main room. They said nothing for a few minutes, they just sat there.

Brian lifted his head and smiled. Mark looked at him and gave into to the smile.

"That was a very pleasant surprise." he said.  
"Yeah. I enjoyed it myself." Brian replied, but as soon as he did, his smile faded. "Mark, I know you may not understand, but please, I don't want to talk about it. I... I just want to stay here with you."

He was right. Mark didn't understand, and although he was really interested in knowing what Brian had meant back in the locker room, but as much as he was curious, he was quite happy to let it go for the moment.

With a gentle squeeze to his hand, Mark said, "That's okay, Brian. We'll figure everything out later. When you're ready."

_Anything just to get that smile._

"Wait." Mark gave him a look that he was sure was screaming 'don't go'.

Brian let go of Mark's hand, got up and grabbed the remote control from the table.

He sat back down and asked "What's on tonight?"

Mark let out a quiet sigh of relief as Brian grabbed his hand again and moved even closer and smiled at him.

Brian turned on the television and started flipping through the channels.

"Brian, i'm not mad at you. And if I ever am, just flash me that smile of yours, okay?" Mark said to him with a smile of his own.

-

Somehow, sometime after they'd fallen asleep there on the couch, Mark had one arm over Brian's shoulder and Brian had managed to curl up closer to Mark with one arm draped over his waist while his head lay on his chest.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Brian's POV _

_  
_Brian woke up and felt relaxed. After a few seconds, the weight of Mark's arm over his shoulder reminded him why.

_When did we fall asleep?_ He looked up at Mark, with regret in his eyes.

_I shouldn't have done this. I'm just hurting him. I need to leave. Why did I wait so long to leave? I shouldn't have come. Showing up was a mistake. It doesn't matter how either one us fell, it can't happen._

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Mark's POV_

__

Why didn't he stay? He didn't have to explain anything. And nothing was going to happen between us. Why couldn't he just stay? I didn't even think he'd want to see me, but he still came to see me. What's going on in the Rocketman's head?

* * *

For the love of fiction, REVIEW! Thanks. Keep going or nah?


	4. Chapter 4

AN: Thanks to **TheVampireLucinda** for the reviews. I really appreciate them! And I need me one of them cool talking musi.  
And if certain parts of this chapter seem awkward, on my part, I apologize, it's because I don't know what i'm doing. lol. =]

And I know there are people visiting, so please stay, read and review!

Thanks,  
FortheloveofWrestling Mark thought to himself as he got up from the couch.

* * *

What is going on with this kid?

He moved over to the bedroom and threw himself on the bed. The show wasn't until later so he didn't really need to be up for a while.

About an hour into his sleep, Mark heard knocking on the door. With a little mumble and grumble, Mark got up and made his way to the door.

As he reached the door, he could feel the beginnings of a headache. _I'm getting too old for these high school games, _he thought to himself. As he opened the door, he was greeted with Brian's crooked smile.

Brian stood there for a moment, hoping Mark wouldn't bombard him with questions about what had happened. _Please, just don't be mad at me._

"You coming in or are you just going to stand there?"

The crooked smile quickly turned into a full-blown Brian Kendrick smile.

"You feel like having breakfast with me?"

Mark looked at him and smiled, not really wanting to start with the questions and the non-existent answers that came along with them.

"Yeah, just let me grab a shower and get dressed."

"Okay, um... do you mind if I wait here? My roommate isn't much of a morning person and I don't want to wake him up."

"But you don't mind waking The Undertaker, though, huh?"

Brian looked down at his feet, and apologized, "Oh, I'm sorry Mark, I didn't mean to bother-"

"I'm kidding, Brian. Relax." Mark chuckled. "I'll be out in a few minutes, make yourself comfortable."

Mark wanted to add so much to that last sentence, like ask him why he had left or why he refuses to give him a straight answer about what's been going on.

Instead, Mark reached over with one arm and grabbed Brian across the waist, pulling him closer. Mark ducked his head down and caught Brian's lips with his. Their kiss started just as the other two had, soft and cautious, but wanting to see how far Brian would let him go, Mark moved his hands to Brian's hips and gently prodded his mouth with his tongue. Brian was really caught off guard, he didn't think Mark would make such a move, especially after last night. Taking the hint, Brian, although scared he was just making another mistake, and with a soft sigh, let his body get the best of him. He parted his lips just enough for Mark to take the invitation. Mark plundered Brian's mouth, wanting nothing more than to let Brian know, once and for all, how he felt about him; and wanting to know how Brian felt about him. Although he knew Brian felt the same way, he wanted to feel Brian give into his desire as well.

After their mouths parted, both men just stood there, eyes closed and trying to remember how the other felt. Mark kept his hands on Brian's hips, not ready to let go; and Brian held onto Mark's arms, knowing if it wasn't for him, he'd probably be a pile of mush on the floor. He stood with his head against Mark's chest and he could hear and feel Mark's heart beating, he was sure Mark could probably hear his, which was pounding in his throat.

Mark moved his head closer to Brian's ear and whispered, "will you still be hear when I get out?"

Feeling guilt overwhelm him, Brian nodded and let go of Mark, allowing him to disappear into the bedroom. Before he went into the room and noticed the guilt in Brian's eyes, and instantly wanted to walk back over and make it all disappear again. Restraining himself though, he just walked into the bedroom.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Brian's POV_

_I can't believe how amazing that felt. Just that one kiss and i've forgotten everything that's happened. Why didn't I stay last night?_

_Because if given the chance, I would have wanted that one kiss to go a lot farther than this._

Brian sat on the couch and fidgeted around.

_Ugh. It's not the same without Mark sitting next to me._

_Maybe this could work. Mark is a big dog in the locker room, no one will say anything about us, right?_

He looked at the television screen and contemplated turning it on, but didn't. He just sat there and thought about what had just happened, and how great it felt.

_Come on, man up, Kendrick._

_At least talk to him about it and stop running and playing games, this isn't high school._

_Just talk to him about it, either over breakfast or maybe if he wants to hang out after, I can talk to him about it then._

Feeling frustrated, he leaned forward, with his elbows on his knees and his head in his hand. After a moment, he heard the door in the bedroom open.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mark's POV

_This kid is something else. He leaves me in the middle of the night, comes knocking at my door at 9 in the morning and asks me to breakfast like nothing ever happened._

Mark closed his eyes, as he let the much needed cold water run over his head.

_His lips, his mouth. The way his fingers were scratching at my elbows. Everything about that kiss was amazing._

_Be glad you enjoyed it. May not get another kiss like that from him again._

Mark finished up with his shower and got dressed.

_Maybe if I behave myself and act as though nothing about the last week or so has been burning a hole in my brain, he'll let me have another taste._

_He couldn't help but smile at the thought of being able to feel that sensation again. Finally, after a sigh of hope, fear, anticipation and stress, Mark walked out of the bathroom._

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The two men, still a little off-kilter from their kiss, decided that maybe driving wasn't the best option at the moment, so they stayed in the hotel and had breakfast in the hotel restaurant.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Hey, what's up guys?" Mark heard as Jeff came into his view.

"Yo! What's good J-Dog?" Brian said, with some strange gangster-thug accent.

Mark couldn't help but laugh at the two younger guys going on about 'hittin' the streets' and working on some new hard beats'.

Jeff laughed, "alright, I better get going before Mark starts cracking his ribs over _hurr._"

Mark thanked him for the morning laugh and he and Brian took a seat in an empty table. The nearest group of guys was a couple tables away, so he knew people would take the hint and not bother them.

After they had both ordered, Mark slyly moved his hand over to where Brian's lay on the table and gave it a quick squeeze.

"I'm sorry about what I said earlier."

Brian looked at him, a bit confused. "What are you talking about?" he asked.

"When I asked you if you would still be there when I got out of the shower." Mark looked down, it was his turn to have the guilt in his eyes. "I didn't mean for it to come out the way it did."

"No, it's okay, Mark. I shouldn't have tried to act like nothing happened."

_Sigh._

_Great Mark, so much for just moving on._

"You don't have to explain anything, I told you we would work whatever this is, out when you're ready." Mark told him. "I'm in no big hurry. I just want everything to work out for us both."

With a small nod, Brian knew that he couldn't bring himself to start that particular conversation now, not when Mark was being so honest and caring towards him.

So, as quickly as it was brought up, the conversation was dropped and changed to something less awkward and upsetting.

Although Mark was enjoying their new conversation on the Batman movie series, he could feel another 'talk' coming soon.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Once they finished breakfast, Mark asked Brian if he wanted to go back to his room and hang out for a while. And although Brian begged himself to refuse, so that he could avoid the conversation looming over their heads, he accepted.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The two men walked into the hotel and took a seat on the couch. To the dismay of them both, they didn't fall into the positions they had the night before.

Mark turned on the television and found some movie on and put the remote down on the table.

_Did he move closer? No, must be my imagination._

Brian watched the movie, not really interested in what they were watching.

_Hope he doesn't mind that I moved a little closer._

After meaningless small talk about the movie, they fell into a peaceful silence. Although Brian had other things on his mind than the movie, the explosion on the screen surprised him and he jumped in his seat and his hand landed on Mark's thigh.

Instantly, Mark felt the spark, but didn't say anything, instead, he enjoyed the sight of Brian engrossed in the movie.

Once the movie ended, Brian noticed his hand on Mark's thigh, and although he didn't move it, he looked up at Mark and gave him _The _Brian Kendrick smile.

Suddenly, Brian felt all the guilt and questions hovering over them.

"I'm sorry Mark. I want to be with you, i've wanted to be with you, but I was too afraid of saying or doing anything because I know how some of the guys are in the locker room. One little thing, and they blow it up into something it's not. If we were together, then people would start saying things about us. Like i'm with you just because i'm looking for a push or they might think differently about you because of our age difference. I don't want them to think anything bad about you. I know they won't say anything because they know better, but they'll think it. And if I get a push I want it to be on my own merit, not your coat tails. I wish we could be together, Mark, but i'm just so afraid of what will come with it."

He probably would have kept going, but he was out of breathe.

After a moment, Mark lifted Brian's chin and tilted his head to meet his eyes.

"Brian, does it look like I care what anyone thinks. As for as i'm concerned, whatever they may say about us is only out of jealousy because they can't have you."

Brian gave him a crooked smile.

"Look Rocketman, I know where you're coming from, okay, I do. But don't make any decisions based on what you think people are going to think of _me_ because I don't care what they think and neither should you."

he paused knowing that this other issue probably had a lot more to do with it than Brian wanted to let on.

"As far as you getting a push, you_ are_ going to get a push based on your own merits. I have nothing to do with what you do in the ring. That's all you out there. It isn't in anyone best interest for you to be pushed other than your's and the company's. If they want to put you out there more, they will because you've should them that you deserve it."

"So what happens when we show up together and the guys start talking about us? And start saying that i'm with you, just for the push?" Brian asked.

"Then I punch them in the face." Brian couldn't help but laugh at how serious Mark sounded. He knew he was kidding, but still the thought of Mark going around and punching _everybody_ in the face was pretty funny.

"Okay."

"Okay? Okay, what?" Mark asked.

"Okay, I want to give this a shot."

Mark smiled and pulled Brian closer to him and hugged him.

After a second, Brian pushed himself away and looked at Mark.

"But I don't want to rush into things. I really, _really_ like you Mark, and I don't want anything to happen before it should." Brian chuckled, "I think it's the prude in me, but I don't sleep with anyone on the first date. That okay with you?"

Mark laughed, "Okay, I think I can manage to survive. And we can go slow, if that's what you want. I really, _really_ like you too and I don't want to ruin this. Besides, any speed is better than what we were going at before." they both laughed.

"Alright, so what do we do now?" Brian asked, suddenly feeling shy.

"I think you go back to your room now and get ready to go, then come back so we can ride to the arena together."

"Sounds good."

With that, Brian stood up and Mark followed him to the door.

"You know, I'm not so much of a prude that I don't kiss on the first date."

Mark chuckled and leaned down to meet Brian's lips.

Brian put his hands on Mark's shoulders, as he felt his knees turning to mush.

This time, without hesitation, Brian parted his lips for Mark who gladly took the invitation. As he did, Brian also took advantage and darted his own tongue into Mark's warm mouth. The dueling they were doing was quickly ended though as Brian's cell phone rang.

"That was nice." Mark whispered.

Brian smiled as he muted his phone.

"Thanks for pressuring me into this whole thing Mark" he said sarcastically.

"Glad I was able to." Mark responded.

They shared another quick kiss and Brian left.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Mark's POV_

_Finally the kid's coming around. Hopefully he doesn't change his mind. He won't. I know he enjoyed that as much as I did. And I really enjoyed it._

_There won't really be any lash outs from any of the guys, that was probably just a cover for the real concern: him being able to get a push on his own and not because of me._

_I could get him a push if I wanted, but it's not my place and I wouldn't do that to him. I know he deserves it, but it's up to Vince what happens with my rocketman. _

_My rocketman? Hm. That sounds pretty good._

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Brian's POV_

_Alright. This is good. We, well, I got everything out in the open and it seems like this is going to work out._

_I know it is. We both get a long great and we've already been spending a lot of time together. If he can deal with the attitudes i've had around him recently, then I'm sure everything will work out with us._

_Hopefully he doesn't think that my concern for him was a lie. I really don't want anyone to think differently of him because we're together, but I really don't want them thinking that I am just with him for the career boost._

_That's not what it is. I want to be with him because he's a great guy, with a great sense of humor and killer smile._

_He's right. I can't care what people think of us, but I don't want all that i've worked for to be ruined just because people think i'm with him for a push. I've worked hard to get to this place in my career, I just don't want to see it ruined._

_He cares about me though, he won't let them think that. He knows that's not the reason I want to be with him. Why wouldn't I have jumped at the chance before, if I was? It's because I'm not. He knows it, I know it. That's all that matters._

_Besides, if anyone thinks differently, Mark will just punch them in the face._

* * *

REVIEW! And sorry for it being long.  
I'm begging you, REVIEW!


	5. Chapter 5

AN: Much shorter this time around and no POV's. Wonder why?  
THANKS a ton to **TheVampireLucinda **and **Ashura77** for the reviews.

-FortheloveofWrestling

* * *

The ride to the arena was pleasant. Both Mark and Brian steered clear of any semantics about their relationship. They talked about maybe going out to dinner with some of the guys after the show. Brian had to admit, although he didn't want people to find out so quickly, hoping to delay the reactions he knew would come, he couldn't and didn't want to hide their new found relationship. He was happy they were giving it a shot, but the feeling in his stomach that told him they were going to have some problems, never truly went away.

Finally, once they arrived, Mark took Brian's hand as they entered the arena but when he did, Brian remembered having to talk to Jaime Noble about something with his match.

Before he left to 'talk' to Jaime, he said that he'd meet Mark back at his locker room later.

Mark, determined to make Brian feel better about their relationship, held onto his wrist as he turned away. And while there weren't too many people around, some of the crew were hanging around and unless they were asleep, they noticed the sweet kiss Mark gave him.

Brian's face grew red for a few reasons. He didn't really think of Mark as the type to publicly show affection; he still couldn't believe he and Mark were 'together', even if it had only been a couple of hours; finally, Brian was flushed because he knew people had seen them kiss. It was only a matter of time before it got back to the other guys.

As he was 'looking' for Noble, Brian wandered out to ringside. He sat and watched as the crew members put the ring together for the show. He had to have been sitting there for a while because when he turned around to the person calling him, he saw that Adam was already dressed in his gear for the show. Adam sat down beside him.

"What are you doing out here, kid?"  
"Nothing. Just thinking, I guess."  
"What about?"  
"Nothing."  
"Oh come on, Brian. We're friends, so spill it. Would it have anything to do with how much you and Mark have been getting along?"  
Brian gave him a look.  
"No. Why would it be about that?"  
"Okay, so maybe about you guys hooking up last night?"  
"Where did you hear that?"  
"Matthew said you came in pretty late after coming from his room."  
"That's not how it is." Brian said with a terrified look on his face.  
"Sorry. Those were my words, not his. He said that you came in late from his room."  
Brian sighed out of relief.

"Mark's a pretty awesome guy, so I don't blame you for the fascination or _whatever _you guys got going on." he laughed.  
"But it's not like that, I mean it wasn't..." Brian trailed off.  
"But it is _now_?" Adam smirked. "Mark would kill me for trying messing with his bad ass image, but he's a really sweet guy. Once he cares about you, he'll always care about you. No matter what. He'll be your best friend, boyfriend, mentor, coach... everything."  
"Sounds like you have a thing for him." Brian laughed.  
"I _did_. Not anymore though."  
"What? You serious?"  
"Yeah. We were together for a while, but it wasn't working out."  
"Wow. I didn't know that. Mind if I ask what happened?"  
"Well it was mostly my fault, I guess. I started drinking a little more and was taking a couple extra pain killers than I was supposed to." Adam paused, "And, of course, Mark was concerned for me and never got off my back about it and finally, I just broke it off. It was a horrible thing to do and the way I did it was pretty horrible, but hindsight is always 20/20 and I know it was for the best. He still helped me though. He made sure to watch me when I needed him to. He stuck by me when I needed him, but didn't care enough to stay with him." he said with a smile. "He's one of my best friends and even though I treated him like crap, he was there to protect me."  
"That actually makes sense now that I think about it. The way you guys are together, I mean."  
Adam laughed, "Yeah. It's funny. Even though we together for a couple of months, I still see the concern for me that he had when we were together. That's why whatever you guys got going on, it's a good thing. Mark cares about you and that's something pretty special."  
"Yeah. But it's pretty hard. I'm afraid of what's going to happen if things continue."  
"We'll whatever happens, I mean if you guys decide to get together or whatever, don't be afraid of it." he paused. "I better get going. See ya' later, Brian."  
Adam got up and as he was about to disappear he yelled out to Brian.  
"He's a good kisser too, isn't he?" just as he was finishing the sentence Brian threw the bottle of water he was picking up from the floor.

_How did he know already?_ He shook his head, he had to admit, if they wanted to, guys could be huge gossipers.

Soon there were a few stagehands calling all the people who didn't need to be there to the back. Brian made his way back out and found his way to Mark's locker room. He wanted to see how he was before heading to the main locker room.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Knock._

"You in there Mark? It's me."  
"Yeah, come on in."  
As Brian walked in he found Mark sitting on the couch with his cell phone up to his ear.

Brian grabbed his bag from table and placed it on his lap as he sat down on the table. His mind was already going back to his conversation with Adam when Mark spoke.

"Hey you, where've you been?"  
"I'm sorry I lost track of time. I was out ringside."  
"Oh. You should have told me. I would have joined you. That's a favorite past time of mine."  
"I will next time. I just needed to think about some stuff."  
Mark was afraid he might say something like that.

"But everything's all good now, for the most part." Brian flashed his goofy smile.

"Yeah? That's good. I'm glad." Mark answered, hope in his voice.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After the show, Mark and Brian joined Adam, Hunter, Show, Ken and Jeff for dinner.

The men all returned to the hotel and left their stuff in their rooms. With a few strings being pulled, they were able to have the hotel restaurant all to themselves.

They all sat down at a table. Of course, Brian sat next to Mark, with Jeff to his other side. Adam purposely sat in front of Mark and Brian in order to make googly faces at Brian when Mark wasn't looking.

Everyone ordered their drinks, mostly beer all the way around, except for Brian, Mark and Ken. By the time they were ready to order their food, Adam was finishing his beer. Brian noticed that Mark glanced up at him when the waitress asked him if he'd like another, and he said yes.

Adam looked up to find Mark's eyes on him. "Just this last one, and i'm done. I promise." Adam whispered in Mark's direction and Mark nodded.

"How long?" Mark asked leaning in as to not share the conversation.

"I haven't had a drop in about 2 weeks." Adam said.

"Good. Last one, please?" Mark said and Adam nodded.

Brian smiled. _Adam was right. He really does care a lot about the people close to him._

Once the men all ordered their food, discussion about a million different things broke out at the table. Brian and Jeff sat and played with the silverware in front of them and then started throwing small pieces of bread at Show.

"Mark, i'm going to hurt your boyfriend if he continues." everyone laughed and Brian grew red in the cheeks.

"Hey, Show, we're sorry man, but you're an easy target." Jeff told them.

Ken chimed in, "Great, he's coming after you two, and i'm going to get caught in the middle of his rage."

"Casualties are guaranteed, who they will be, I don't know." Show responded.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Half way through the dinner, Mark felt a hand on his leg under the table. He turned to Brian who smiled. He moved his hand and held it open on top of the table. Mark questioned the action, surprised that in such a short time Brian was feeling comfortable around them. Finally, with a smile, Mark took his hand.

Adam noticed and smiled at Brian and then at Mark who smiled back.

"So Hunter, you got the cards?" Mark asked.

With a confused look, Brian asked "What cards?"

"They have a running bet on who can charge the most money to Vince's account. They play blackjack to see who gets the bill." Jeff answered.

"At the end of the month, the loser has to take responsibility and the consequences for it." Ken added.

"Really?" Brian laughed, "Who's winning so far?"

Show whipped out his wallet and took out a small note card.

"Hunter, by only $80. Who ever gets this bill will be in the lead."

Hunter pulled out the cards. "Come on, old man. Step up to the plate if you can still hang with the boys." Hunter joked.

"Alright, let's get this done. Adam deals." Adam took the cards from Hunter and after a little shuffling, gave them each a card.

Mark looked at his card, a twelve. Hunter looked at his, a King.

"What do you say Rocketman, hit?" Mark asked.

"You're asking me?" Mark nodded. "Hit." Brian smiled.

"You heard him, hit me."

"Me too" Hunter said.

Hunter was dealt another King. "Wow. Irony is awesome. This is how you go down, my friend. It's fate." he laughed.

Mark picked up his card.

"Alright guys. Ready? Show us the money." Jeff said.

"I am the King of Kings." Hunter said as he laid out his cards. "The bill is all mine."

Mark looked at Brian and winked, as he laid out his cards. A twelve and a nine.

"21, baby!" Brian cheered.

The guys all laughed as Hunter sunk back into his seat.

"My boys came through for me." Mark said as he raised his glass to Brian, who clinked his glass with it, and then to Adam.

"I said my _boys_ came through for me. That includes you Mr. Dealer." Adam smiled and did the same with his glass of water.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After dinner, and gloating from Mark, they all said called it a night and went back to their rooms.

Mark, Brian and Adam stayed in the hallway for a few minutes. Just as Adam was going to head in he thanked Mark for looking out for him. Mark began to close the gap between them in order to keep their conversation between them but Adam stopped him.

"It's cool, Mark. Brian knows about it."

"He does?" Mark looked at Brian who had a sheepish grin on his face.

"Yeah, we had a little talk earlier and I spilled the beans."

"Oh, so that's what you were doing." he told Brian. "And you don't have to thank me, Adam. I've already told you."

"I know, and you don't have to watch out for me either, but you do anyway."

Mark gave him a small smile.

"Alright, I'll let you guys go. I'll see you two tomorrow."

Adam gave Brian a small hug and then Mark, who gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"Thanks again Mark" Adam whispered, and Mark gave him another smile.

Mark and Brian walked in front of Mark's room and Mark opened the door.

"You want to come in for a while?"

"I do, but I better get to bed."

Mark raised his eyebrow and his face grew into a smirk.

"I better get to my own bed." Brian laughed.

"So you going to tell me what it is you and Adam talked about?"

"Nope." Brian chuckled.

"Hm. That doesn't sound too good."

"No, it's nothing bad. In fact, it's pretty darn good. I should thank him."

"Well, now I really want to know." Mark smiled.

Pause.

"You sure you don't want to come in?" Mark asked again.

"No, I better get to bed." Another smirk from Mark. "Dirty old man." Brian joked.

Mark laughed and then kissed him.

"I'm really getting used to that, you know?"

"Good." Mark paused, "So will you be my wake up call again tomorrow?"

"Yeah, i'll be here, bright and early." Brian said.

"Good."

"'Night Mark" Brian said with another kiss.

"'Night Rocketman."

* * *

To those reading, please bear with me, if you haven't noticed, I have NO idea where i'm going with this story.  
But I have the final 'scene' all done. =] Just trying to fill the middle now.

REVIEW!


	6. Chapter 6

AN: Chap. 6!  
In the other chapters, I mention 'Matthew' and in this I mention Brian, Mike and John. Matthew and Brian would be the Major Bros. (Hawkins and Ryder) and Mike and John would be Miz and Morrison.  
I'm just sayin'.

Thanks to those reading and reviewing!  
-Fortheloveofwrestling

* * *

That night, both Mark and Brian fell asleep with a sense of peace about their new relationship. Mark hadn't really thought that Brian would be so open about it this early. He was sure he was going to have to fight to get Brian to be more open, but he didn't have to. Brian was coming around on his own.

_Now, if I just knew what he and Adam talked about earlier, and why Adam was making those ridiculous faces when he thought that I wasn't looking._

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Brian walked into his room, he tried to be quiet so he wouldn't wake his room mate, but failed as he stubbed his foot on a chair.

"Ouch!" he yelled, immediately covering his mouth.

"It's okay, i'm still awake." he heard come from somewhere under the blankets.

"Sorry. Why aren't you asleep yet? You usually knock out the second you hit the bed." Brian teased.

"I know, but I can't seem to get comfortable tonight."

Matthew watched as Brian grabbed his stuff and went into the bathroom. A few minutes later, Brian returned wearing an Undertaker tee shirt and Simpson's pajama bottoms.

Matthew waited a minute and then asked Brian, "So, are you just going to pretend nothing's going on?"

Brian smiled, "what are you talking about?"

"Come off it, you know what i'm talking about!"

"Well you're right, I do. But since you feel the need to go and discuss things with Adam and who knows who else, I don't think I want to."

"I just told Adam you guys were hanging out late. I didn't know it was supposed to be a secret."

"No, it's cool. I'm glad you did. Adam came and talked to me and we had a good conversation."

"See. I did nothing wrong." Brian laughed and said goodnight.

"No, seriously, tell me. What's going on with you guys?" Matthew asked again.

"Goodnight, Matthew" Brian laughed.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next morning, true to his word, Brian snuck out, still in his pajamas, and knocked on Mark's door. He heard Mark curse something that rattled. When he opened the door he was grabbing at his leg.

"Oops." Brian said. "Too early?" he laughed.

"No, you said bright and early." Mark replied.

"I'm sorry, Mark. Are you okay?" Brian couldn't help but laugh.

"Yes." Mark gave him a fake glare.

Mark let him in and Brian plopped himself down on the couch.

"What in the world are you wearing, Brian?" Mark asked.

"Like the shirt?'' he smiled. ''They're my pajamas. I figured since we had the day off and don't have to leave until morning, we could just lounge around all day." he said with a smile, "unless you have plans and then I could get out of your hair."

"No, no. I don't have any plans. At least none other than lounging." Mark smiled.

They ordered breakfast and after they were done, they just sat and talked.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Alright, so basically, the very first time you and I met, all those years ago, you lied to me?" Mark questioned.

"Yeah, kind of, sort of." Brian laughed.

"After the segment, after I gave you the Last Ride, I asked you if you were alright, and you said you were fine."

"I know, and I was at the time you asked." Brian reasoned, "it was the adrenaline from getting to be in the ring with you. Even if it was only for a few moments. When I got back to the hotel, my back was killing me though."

Mark laughed, "Well, sorry about that. I wish you would have said something."

"It was worth it." Brian smiled.

"You're a very odd man, Brian."

"Yeah, but I think it works for me." he smiled.

Brian got up and walked over to the window. It was a pretty sunny day out and that gave him an idea.

"Hey Mark, you wanna go swimming?"

"Swimming? Here? No thanks, the pool is bound to be full of people."

"No, upstairs." Brian corrected him.

"What do you mean upstairs?"

"On the roof. They have a pool on the roof. It's really nice and no one uses it without permission from the hotel." Brian pleaded. "Please?"

"How do you know this?"

"Does it matter, big man? Go get your trunks on! Come on!" Brian screeched. "I'll be back in a few minutes."

Brian ran to Mark and placed a kiss on his lips and as Mark was about to say something, he was out the door.

_That's why he's my Rocketman, right? _Mark laughed.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mark had done as asked and changed into his swimming trunks. He sat down on the bed and laughed.

_How did I get here? I didn't even say I wanted to go swimming. _He laughed again._ Get off it, you'd do anything he asked you to do._

Mark was about to lay down when he heard the door.

"It'd be easier if you just had your own key card, you know?" Mark joked as Brian walked in wearing his swimming trunks.

"Noted for the next hotel." Brian laughed. "You ready to go?"

Mark smiled, "Uh, yeah. I guess."

"I never actually let you answer before, did I?" Brian sighed, "we don't have to go if you don't want to, Mark."

"Well I've already made the effort, so come on. Besides, I think you, me and a private pool could be fun."

"You're horrible, Mark" Brian laughed as they walked out of the room.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So, what did you do? Just ask to use the pool?" Mark asked.

"Pretty much."

They stepped out of the elevator and into a small hall. Brian pulled out a key card and slid it through the lock and opened the door to the pool.

"Wow. This is pretty nice."

"Told you."

They walked over to a couple of chairs and set their stuff down. Mark sat down on one of the chairs.

"Aren't you going in?"

"No, I thought I'd just sit and watch you."

"Aw, come on Mark. I was all excited." Brian pouted, hoping it would change Mark's mind.

"Oh, no. Don't you start pouting." Mark said, "Sorry, sweetheart, but that's not going to work on me."

Brian stood there, pout firmly in place on his face.

"I'm serious, Brian. That's not going to work, you go ahead. Believe me, I'll enjoy myself here." Mark said as he closed his eyes and laid his head back against the chair.

Brian didn't say a word, just took off his shirt and noticed the quick peek Mark caught. He put his cell phone down on the table and picked the sunglasses off of Mark's head.

"Come on, get up." he said.

"Nope."

"Alright. Fine." He said.

He turned around, ran and cannon-balled himself into the pool. Once he came up, Mark laughed and then closed his eyes again.

Brian quietly got out of the pool and stood in front of Mark again. He leaned down and caught Mark's lips with his. He silently asked Mark to part his lips, and once he did, he roamed his mouth with his tongue. Brian let Mark's do the same. After Brian had tasted all of Mark's warm mouth, he gently bit down on Mark's lip pulled at it until he finally let their mouths part.

By this time, Brian was resting one knee on the chair and his arms holding him in position over Mark's body. He looked into Mark's green eyes and whispered "please?"

Mark took a moment to answer and then burst out laughing.

"What in the world did I get myself into?" Mark said as he sat up. "Come on, Rocketman."

"Yes! Thank you, Mark."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mark and Brian spent some time just goofing around in the pool, they wrestled and then took turns splashing each other, but after a short time found something a little more interesting to do.

Their mouths were at battle. Mark getting the upper hand, only to lose it as Brian began making circles with his fingertips on the back of Mark's neck.

Mark had Brian pushed up against the wall of the pool and had Brian's legs wrapped around his waist. Mark tore his mouth away from Brian's and moved over to his neck. Mark started nibbling around the soft, smooth flesh. Brian turned his head to the side to give him better access, absent-mindedly swaying his hips into Mark's waist.

"You taste good, Rocketman." Mark said with a slight growl that brought Brian's head out from the clouds.

"Mm. Do I? Let me see." Brian said as he grabbed onto Mark's shoulders and pressed his mouth against Mark's.

"Whoa! Way to go, Brian!" Matthew yelled, as he, Brian, Mike and John cheered and hollered.

Brian quickly let go of Mark's mouth and gently pushed him away a little, and finally turned around to see who was the cause of his embarrassment and fear.

Mark sighed and let his head fall. Brian turned back around and did the same. Mark finally looked up at the guys standing by the door. Once they realized Mark was looking at them, they quickly shut up and turned to leave.

"Do I go and punch them in the face now?" he asked, hoping Brian wouldn't revert back to being afraid of their relationship.

"We better get going before someone else comes by after they've gone to tell everyone." Mark sighed again and started to get out of the pool. Brian silently followed him.

"Really, Brian. I'll go punched them in the face, if you want" Mark joked, as he grabbed Brian's towel and handed it to him.

"Thanks. But I think maybe I might want to do that myself." Brian said, forcing a smile.

Brian knew his friends meant no harm in the teasing, but he knew it was just a matter of time before they started to think other things.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Mark's POV_

_Great. We were making some real progress._

He reached across the hall and took Brian's hand into his.

_I can just imagine the things that he probably has running through his mind right now. He thinks they are going to think he's stringing me along for a shot at something better. We've already talked a little about it and how neither one of us should care what anyone has to say about us. Wonder what's got the Rocketman so strung up on this?_

Mark looked over at Brian and saw something he swore was tears building up in his eyes. As they waited for the elevator, Mark pulled Brian close to him and held him. Brian wrapped his arms around Mark's waist and Mark kissed the top of his head.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Brian's POV_

_How pathetic am I? Hopefully he doesn't know i'm crying. Hopefully he thinks it's just from the pool. I'm going to seriously keep things quiet about us, well, i'm going to try to at least._

_I can't let anyone think that my motives are to get something out of him. Who am I kidding? It's just a matter of time before they start to think that again._

Brian just let Mark's arms around him take care of the now, and he would have to work on making sure no one got the wrong idea about them.

As much fear as he had for things going wrong, like the last time, he wanted to make things work with Mark.

Just being held, even for a minute, was worth the struggle that he knew was waiting for them.

* * *

_"They start to think that again"; "like the last time"? Hm. Wonder what happened to the Rocketman?_  
Thanks for reading. Still have no idea where any of this is going though. =]  
**REVIEW!**


	7. Chapter 7

AN: Big thanks to the people reviewing! I really appreciate it!  
I'm think about how long I want this to be and I have no idea, so y'all are just going to have to bear with me.

Keep reviewing,  
-FortheloveofWrestling

* * *

The ride back up to their floor had been a quiet one. Neither one of them really knew what to say. Mark didn't see what the harm was, he was only upset because he knew Brian was probably thinking that something bad was going to happen from it. He didn't know what he could say to Brian to make him see things differently, that he hadn't already tried saying. There was nothing that he could do or say to make Brian understand how silly it was to think that everyone had it out for them, simply because they were together.

Brian on the other hand, knew that Mark must be feeling a bit guilty or maybe even felt sorry for him. In Mark's mind, there was no reason for him to be upset or feel so cautious about their relationship, but in his mind, he knew exactly what the reason was. And it was a horribly good reason. But nothing he was willing to talk about, at least not to Mark because then he'd surely want out of the relationship. Brian knew that it wasn't very fair of him to judge Mark on his own opinions; Mark was nothing but kind and understanding, but Brian was just so afraid that if he told Mark why he was afraid starting a relationship with him, he knew Mark would wise up; how could he not?

He was actually surprised that Mark hadn't already asked why he was so timid and scared of opening up. Deciding not to test the gods, he shook the thought out of his head, he didn't want Mark to ask, he didn't want Mark to know why. He'd just think what everyone else thought.

_Ding._

The bell of the elevator brought both men out from their thoughts. Mark walked out and took hold of Brian's hand. When they stopped at Brian's room, Brian reached up and kissed mark's cheek.

"Thanks for going swimming with me." he said.

"Thanks for making me. I knew we'd have fun in a private pool." Mark smiled.

"So much for privacy." Brian snorted.

"You look tired, eat and go to sleep, kid."

"What are you doing later?"

"Ordering in. Watching some horrible movie on TV. Wanna join me?" he asked.

"Gee. Real romantic." Brian said with his goofy smile. "Yeah, i'll join you. Maybe I can bring over some movie that isn't horrible?"

"Sounds like a plan." Mark smiled, "Are you alright?" Mark asked, his concern getting the better of him.

"Yeah, i'm fine." Brian nodded.

Mark took a second before answering, "Okay. i'll see you later then."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Brian's POV_

After a quick lunch, Brian had fallen asleep. Thankfully when he woke up, Matthew was no where to be found. Brian sat up and looked at the clock, he still had a while before he needed to go. He grabbed his laptop from his bag and opened it up. As he was scrolling through his email, he suddenly felt the emotion that he felt at the pool. He closed the laptop, and sat there with his head in his hands.

_How the hell am I supposed to go into this relationship when I still have so much stuff going on. I can't even handle something that happened years ago. What the hell am I doing trying to start something with Mark. He's the only one who is going to get hurt from all of this. I know what I need to deal with, but Mark is the innocent one here. If I tell him, he'll probably say that it isn't a big deal, but how could it not be? I'll end up ruining things anyway. And if I don't, then i'm risking our friendship. Once I do tell him, he'll know that this isn't something he wants anymore and he'll break it off. Who could blame him? I'm a grown man, and i'm still hung up on such stupid things that I have no idea how to keep from happening again._

Brian wiped the few tears that had spilled over, took a deep breath and composed himself. He knew he had two options and a couple of days coming up, to decide what he should do.

He opened up his laptop and began looking through his email once again. _You've got mail._ Brian switched windows and looked at his new email and laughed. He opened up the mail and read it,

_Haha. Will you do this for me sometime?_

Brian bust out laughing watching the video clip that Mark sent him. It was a clip of him doing his strange little dance in the ring. He read the email over again a few more times, laughing each time. Finally, he started his reply.

_Yeah, that's not creepy at all. The Undertaker looking for clips of his new boyfriend on Youtube. _

_But you never know, THE Brian Kendrick is pretty crazy like that too. If you're good enough, THE_ _Brian Kendrick will treat you to THE dance. _

_But, I warn you, only a select few get special shows. You will become one of the elite._

_Send._

_That's why i'm willing to fight through the pain. Because my boyfriend rocks. _He smiled. _It's early, but hopefully he won't mind if I come over now._

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Knock._

Mark opened the door to see that amazing, goofy smile across Brian's face. He had to admit, even with all the drama that was hanging above them and the short period that they had been 'together', Mark was falling pretty hard for him. It hurt him to see Brian upset over things like what had happened earlier. He knew there had to be something that Brian wasn't telling him, and although he wanted nothing more than to just fix whatever was bothering him, he knew he had to leave it up to Brian to make the decision of bring 'it' up.

"I know we haven't made this exclusive or anything, but exactly who else gets these 'special' dances?" Mark asked.

Brian broke into another laugh as he walked into the room.

He knew that his problems were looming over their relationship, and knew that they would be until he opened up to Mark about it. He didn't want to ruin what they had started. Mark was amazing, he knew that Mark cared about him, and since he and Adam talked, he could see how much he cared, he could feel it. There were a ton of different little things that made Mark so amazing. The way he made no effort to show his affection, it just kind of happened for him. It was a natural thing for him. There were other times when Mark would look at him and he could see the concern in Mark's eyes. It was obvious to Mark that there was something keeping them from fully getting close. And he could tell that Mark wanted to fix it, but Brian figured once he knew, he wouldn't see that anymore. That it would be replaced with regret and disgust.

"Hey, when I signed up for this gig, I didn't know we'd have to tell all our secrets." Brian chuckled, but Mark could see the twinge of pain it took from him, but he decided to ignore it.

"So, what did you bring to watch? Better be something good."

"Dang, when did you get all 'bad-ass' and demanding?" Brian laughed.

Mark paused at the comment and raised an eyebrow, "Boy, i've always been bad-ass."

Again, Brian burst out laughing. After a moment, so did Mark. "I don't know if I'm liking this. I think you're making me less bad-ass." Mark said.

"No, you're still bad-ass, just not _all_ bad-ass. I can see some good guy in you too."

"Really? That's good, i'm glad you can see it." Mark said with a bit of a blush and looking down at the table. Everyone always thinks that he's so tough and hard, of course he is, but that wasn't all he was. He was capable of caring about other people too.

"Pfft." Mark looked up and saw Brian turning red from holding in his laughter. "_I_, Brian Kendrick, made the Undertaker blush." he said, his laughter getting the best of him and he fell onto the couch holding his stomach.

Mark looked at him and smiled, then walked over to the couch, grabbed a pillow and proceeded to smack Brian with it. In retaliation, Brian said "And now I got him into a pillow fight" as he reached for another pillow and smacked Mark's arm with it. The two spent the next few minutes battling each other with pillows.

"Okay! I surrender! I surrender!" Brian said, arms raised in defeat, face beet red from laughing.

"That's what I thought. No one, gets the best of the Undertaker."

"Please, Mark, i'm about to crack a rib here. Don't make me laugh anymore." Brian said, trying to regain his strength.

Mark sat down next to him on the couch and wrapped his arm around Brian's shoulder.

"Seriously though, Brian. When do I get to see the dance?" Mark asked and sent Brian into another fit of laughter.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

While they sat and talked for a while, Mark got a call from Hunter asking if they wanted to give him another chance at catching up to Mark's tab. Mark looked over at Brian who shook his head, Mark told him that he'd give him the chance next week, when they got back on the road. Mark wanted to question why Brian didn't want to go out, but afraid whatever answer he gave him would just be a cover for something else, he let it drop.

They ordered their dinner and ate, still learning about each other. When they finished, Mark took Brian's hand and led them to the couch. The second they sat down though, Brian remembered that he forgot the DVD player for the movie. Brian said he would be right back, he was going to go get it, but before he left, Mark suggested, without really thinking, that they could go to the bedroom.

"The television in there has a DVD player." he noted.

Brian stood silent for a moment, unsure of what to say.

"...or you could go and get it, if you want." Mark said with a bit of sadness because Brian didn't feel that comfortable with him yet and that he had even suggested it.

Brian saw it in his eyes, and wanted to show Mark that he trusted him and their relationship, even if he was still very unsure of things. "No, that's fine."

Mark questioned his answer and said, "Brian, i'm not trying to pressure you into bed or anything, I just thought it would be easi-"

"It's fine, Mark." he cut him off, "Really. I know you wouldn't do such things." he chuckled. And he did, he knew Mark wasn't that type of guy, but it was still something Brian wasn't quite expecting.

Mark smiled at him and then got up from the couch.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the bed room, Mark sat on the bed, back against the headboard and watched as Brian nervously put the DVD in and started towards the bed. Mark had to chuckle as Brian sat as far as possible from Mark on the bed.

"Sure you're not going to fall off way over there?" Mark teased?

"Huh? Oh." Brian smiled. "I just don't want to get the bed dirty with my shoes or anything, you know?"

"This ain't my bed, we can get these sheets as dirty as we want." Mark said, hoping to relax Brian a little and succeeding.

Brian moved a little closer, and took up the same position Mark was in. Mark handed him another pillow and the remote. Brian took the pillow and got a little more comfortable and then started the movie.

Much like the last time, somehow, Brian ended up curled next to Mark, his head on Mark's chest and Mark's arm wrapped around his shoulder. Mark couldn't care less what the movie was about anymore, he was quite content to have Brian next to him. No worries about who might see them and make some harmless comment that would send Brian into his shell. Brian felt the same. He was happy they hadn't gone out with the other guys, he was glad he was able to spend the time with Mark, here in his arms.

Brian looked up from his position and placed a small, sweet kiss on Mark's lips. Mark looked at him and asked "What was that for?"

"Just because."

Mark smiled and started running his hand in small circles over Brian's back. For a second, he let his thoughts drift away and he hated that he thought it, but he told himself that this might be as close as Brian lets him get. It frustrated him how much Brian was letting this thing get to him, and he hated even more that Brian wouldn't say anything about it.

Brian sighed into Mark's chest and enjoyed Mark's ministrations. Mark could feel Brian relaxing even more. Once the movie ended, Brian and Mark stayed where they lay and Mark continued his massage, until Brian stiffened in pain.

"Brian, you've got a knot in your lower back." Mark said with concern.

"You're telling me?" Brian said as he sat back.

"I'm sorry. Here, lay down and let me work it out." Mark told him.

"That's okay, i'll be fine, Mark."

"No, I hit it so now it's going to hurt even more." Mark moved over to give Brian room. "Come on, babe. Lay down, please?"

Brian sighed and laid chest down on the bed. It had been hurting him, and now it was hurting more. "Okay, but don't think you can just call me 'babe' and get me to do whatever you want."

"We'll see." Mark laughed as he kneeled on the bed.

Mark began to massage Brian's back and work out the know he had.

"This will probably be easier if you take your shirt off." he suggested.

"Is this what you say to all your boy-toys before you seduced them?" he joked.

"Ha-Ha. Funny. Now, take off your shirt, _babe._" Mark punctuated the word and Brian both laughed and obliged, putting his shirt aside.

Looking at his back, Mark chuckled.

"What?"

Mark traced the small scratches on Brian's back, making the younger man shiver.

"You've got a bunch of little scratches on your back, probably from the pool." he said with a smile.

"Really? Battle scars." Brian said.

Mark leaned over and placed his lips over Brian's, loving the way Brian's mouth felt. "Hopefully that battle isn't over yet," Mark said as he pulled away began massaging Brian's back again.

Brian gave a small moan as he felt relaxed and happy there with Mark, as he soothed away his back aches and for the time being, the internal argument he'd been having with himself, over their relationship.

* * *

I felt the guys needed a little laughter in this chapter, so I gave it to them.  
How am I doing so far? Review and let me know.  
Thanks!


	8. Chapter 8

AN: Thanks to those who are reviewing! Hope you enjoy this newest chapter. Hopefully I can get a couple more in before finals week. "/  
-FortheloveofWrestling

* * *

After Mark had treated Brian to his soothing massage, Brian went back to his room.

With a sigh, Mark closed the door and returned to the bed. He laid there and thought about their new relationship. Everything Brian did was either ridiculously cute or funny, two things that Mark absolutely could not resist.

_So much for being a bad-ass._

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Mark's POV_

_Why is he so timid and scared of this? I have no reservations about the relationship, what does he have to be afraid of? And why won't he tell me what's bothering him? I'm sure he can tell that I want to help, but that's not enough. Did I make him feel like he didn't have a choice? No, Brian's a grown man, and he knows what he wants. It's not like i'm trying to hurry and get him in bed, but if, whatever this is, doesn't get resolved we wont have a relationship. We can't, not with him being so distant. Maybe he just wasn't ready for a relationship?_

Mark sighed and with that last thought, he fell asleep.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next morning, Mark and Brian drove to the airport, acting as if they didn't both have a million questions running through their minds. In the privacy of the 'VIP lounge', they were able to steal a few 'goodbye' kisses before Brian's flight was called.

Mark watched as Brian disappeared into the sky and then returned to his seat with the other guys.

"You've got it bad, Deadman." Hunter said, laughing.  
"Shut it and bet, Hunter." Mark laughed a little and then tried to focus on the playing cards in his hands, hoping to distract himself for the moment.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When Brian got home he didn't want to do a thing, but rest. But in the short time he had been back home, he found himself unable to do anything other than think of Mark. What he was doing? How he would be spending his few days off. Probably with his kids. Brian gave up on cleaning his house and decided that maybe going outside would help him relax a little. It didn't. Still, everything he did brought him back to Mark. _Maybe I should call him?_ After deciding against the idea, Brian focused on what he had told himself he'd focus on.

What was going to happen between him and Mark? He really liked Mark and he could feel that Mark cared about him too. There was no question about that. But did he really want to try and get over the pass while he was trying to have a relationship with Mark? It wasn't fair to Mark. He didn't want to just let Mark get hurt because _he_ was the one being difficult. But what if this was his one shot? Mark's not going to want him when he finds out what he's been hiding. So if he could just fight through the pain and just get over it, they would be fine. But that just leaves Mark being lied to and probably getting hurt in the process still. He couldn't do that. Brian just couldn't think of anything that he was sure wouldn't end up in heartbreak, hurt or lies.

After some time, Brian looked at the clock on the TV and realized he'd been sitting there mauling over what he should do, for over 2 hours. He decided that at this point, it was best of he just went to bed and tried to clear his head for the next day.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In Texas, Mark was doing the same- thinking of Brian. His kids were visiting other family this weekend, so there was really nothing else he had to do _but_ think of Brian. He contemplated calling him a few times, but reasoned against it, thinking it wouldn't do any good to smother the kid. He even thought about calling someone who could help shed some light on what might be bothering him, but quickly let go of the idea, knowing that, that wasn't going to help anything, if anything it would just push him away further.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I don't know what the hell is going on between us." Mark told his friend.  
"Well, why don't you just ask him?" his friend Glen asked.  
"Oh yeah, look what that got me that last time, with Adam."  
"It worked didn't it? Adam is a completely better person, thanks to you being all 'over-protective' and such." Glen laughed.  
"Yeah, but that was a much different situation. With Adam, people could see the problem clearly. With Brian it's some big secret and I don't want him to think i'm trying to force it out of him. If he wants to tell me, he will. I just wish that he would do it already."  
"Okay, well then don't ask and let it play out however it does."  
"And then we're right back at square one, Glen. Damn, why am I even talking to you if you aren't going to help me?" Mark asked as he threw his empty beer can at him.  
"Hey, i'm sorry. It's not my fault your relationships play out like that of a fifteen year old cheerleader." Glen laughed.

"Not everyone is all whips, chains and feathers like you and Dave." Mark teased.

"Speaking of that, what's the _Rocketman _like in the sack?" Glen asked, trying to hide the laughter after seeing Mark's reaction.

For a moment, Glen thought he might get a punch in the gut, but finally Mark laughed, "you've got about 3 seconds to run before Vince loses his upcoming boy on Raw" Mark threatened before arming himself with empty beer cans. Glen snorted at the threat, and then proceeded to jump out of his chair as the first can just narrowly missed him.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As he stepped into the airport, having just got off the plane, Brian stretched and felt relief wash over him, now that he had something to distract him from his thoughts; even if seeing Mark was one of the distractions. He went to look for his luggage, but as he stood there for a few minutes and looked down the line, he noticed his luggage wasn't there. He sighed and sat on a nearby chair. He almost jumped out of his skin when he felt soft lips on his ear. He turned around and that goofy smile crept onto his face. Mark stoop up straight and looked down at his side, smile across his lips.

"When did you get my stuff?" Brian asked.  
"Before you had yourself a nice little stretch." Mark laughed.

"Mhm. And the stalking continues." Brian giggled.

They walked out to Mark's rental car and headed to the week's hotel.

"I got something for you." Mark said, briefly looking over at Brian. Just before the red light turned green, Mark pulled his wallet out from his back pocket and tossed it to Brian. Brian looked at it and then at Mark.

"Open it. There in the front." Brian opened it and laughed. He pulled out a hotel key card and held it up to the window.

"Wow. Look how it sparkles in the sunlight." he joked.  
"Hey. It's nothing special, but at least this way I won't suffer anymore injuries due to early morning visitors." Mark said as he pulled into the parking garage. Brian looked over at him and flashed him his goofy smile.

Once parked, Mark said, "I feel a little ridiculous asking this, but do you think I can sneak a kiss before we walk out?" ever so subtly pouting his lips.  
"Now who can resist those soft, pouty lips?" Brian said with a smirk, as he leaned in and offered his lips to Mark, who gladly took them.

When they parted, Mark opened his door and before getting out stated "they aren't pouty, they're manly," which sent Brian into a fit of laughter.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As Brian stood at the desk, trying to check it, Mark found that he couldn't keep his eyes off of the younger man. Once Brian had finished checking in, he ad Mark went to the elevator. When they got in and the doors closed, much to Mark's surprise, Brian reached for Mark's hand and pulled himself closer to him.

"You know, if I didn't know any better, i'd have sworn you were the Joker. Standing there and staring at me, with that silly grin on your face."  
Mark blushed at being caught and then leaned down to whisper into Brian's ear, just as the door opened, "I can't help it, you just look so damn good."

Brian took a moment to smile before he followed Mark down the hall to their rooms.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After putting his stuff away and chatting with Matthew who had just arrived, Brian already having forgiven him for the teasing at the pool, knowing it wasn't really Matthew's fault, Brian didn't want to rest, as Mark had suggested. He told Matthew he'd be back later and with a few snickers Matthew asked him to wake him when he came into the room at some odd hour of the night. Brian pulled out his key card and sneaked into the room, by the sounds of it, Mark was in the shower, so Brian sat on the couch. After thinking to himself that he should have rested for a while, he laid his head on the armrest of the couch. He heard the water turn off in the next room, and his lips curled into a smile, just as his eyelids fell closed.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mark came out of the bathroom, hair still wet and wearing a pair of black jeans; he grabbed a pair of socks from his bag and sat on the edge of the bed to put them on. After he finished that task, he went back over to his bad and found his cell phone and laptop battery chargers. Mark walked back to the bed and plugged everything in and set the alarm clock for the next day. Sighing, he stood up and stretched his back before walking out into the main room where he left his gym bag, by the door. For a second Mark paused and then turned to see the sleeping form on the couch. He smiled and quietly walked over to Brian and knelt down to place a small kiss on his forehead. Not wanting to disturb him, Mark stood up and went to take a nap as well.

Mark was resting comfortably, no thoughts of the problems he was having with Brian, just a peaceful sleep. Still asleep, Mark's hand felt something tickle his nose and tried to swat it away. A few moments later, it was there again and he swatted it again. Finally, the tickle was gone. As he lay there trying to fall back into the peaceful sleep, Mark could feel a soft breathe across his chest and a second later, he felt a loose arm around his waist. Peeking through shut eyelids, Mark looked down at the young man curled up next to him, head on his chest and arm over his waist. Smiling, Mark turned to look at the clock. _We can stay like this for a while longer,_ he thought to himself before fading into sleep once again.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

About a half hour later, Mark woke up to the sound of his stomach growling.

"Geez, that's some alarm clock you got there." he heard whispered.

"Sorry, didn't mean to wake you."

"It's okay, I've been up for a good ten minutes now." Brian said.

Brian sat up and rested his back against the backboard.

"So you have just been watching me sleep?" Mark joked, "who is the creepy one now?"

Brian laughed "it's still you Taker."

Brian looked at Mark, who was now seated next to him and then let his head fall as he chuckled.

"I tried to be all cute and surprise you, and I ended up falling asleep on your couch." he said, shaking his head.

"That's alright, I was pleasantly surprised to see you there asleep and then waking up to you next to me." Mark said, adding "and don't worry about having to act cute, everything you do is cute." he smiled and playfully knocked his shoulder with Brian.

"Alright, enough of all this mushy stuff, i'm hungry." Mark said, being reminded by his stomach that he was indeed hungry.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The guys went out to some restaurant and talked about some stuff that was going to be happening on Smackdown!. Half way through the meal, Brian's cell phone rang.

_Hello? I'm fine sir, how are you? Really? That's... great. Thank you. Sure thing, Vince, thanks again. Goodnight._

"Vince?" Mark asked.

"Yeah. He wants to see me tomorrow, a little early." Brian said, his face beginning to pale and he had no emotion.

"He say what about?" Mark asked, knowing what it was about.

"The writer's have an idea for me."

Mark sighed inwardly, "Oh, that's great, Brian. I told you they would come around sooner or later."

"Yeah, you did." Brian said, trying to force a smile.

Feeling the night die with every word they spoke, Mark called for the check and paid. As usual, their night ended with them saying goodnight in the hallway and Mark placing a soft kiss on his cheek.

"Congratulations kid, you should be excited, proud. _You_ have earned this shot, Brian. Take advantage of it." Mark told him, hoping that Brian wouldn't be thinking what he knew he was.

"Thanks Mark." Brian said, as he disappeared into his room.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next morning at the arena, Brian felt sick to his stomach. Here he was hanging all over Mark, going out to dinner with him and spending so much of his time in his room, and out of no where, he was getting a push. As much as he hated the idea of getting a push at this particular time, he hated even more that he just couldn't refuse it, not that Vince would take to kindly to that. He didn't want the push, well, he did, but not now and not like this. He kept having to tell himself that Mark had nothing to do with it, so there was no need to be upset with him.

Throughout the day, people were coming up to him and wanting to know what the writers wanted to do. The sickening feeling came back everytime Mark looked at him and he saw pride in his eyes. Brian swore it was because he was just proud of him, and not because he was able to swindle someone into getting him more tv time.

He hated that he even thought about their relationship having anything to do with the push he was going to be getting. In his heart, Brian knew Mark hadn't done anything to get this going, but why now? Why, all of a sudden, the writers had an idea for him?

The day progressed and the show went on and finished, Brian and Mark spent most of the evening afterwards with a couple of the guys, but Brian still felt bad about what was happening. He hated to admit it, but he knew it was only a matter of time and although he knew Mark, personally, had nothing to do with this idea for a push, the same thoughts crept back into his head; _I can't let this happen again. No way. It's not going to, i'll just have to do what I was afraid to do before._

* * *

Hopefully I haven't lost any readers within the last chapters, seriously, i'm new to this, so bear with me and my writing skills.  
Review? THANKS!


	9. Chapter 9

AN: Thanks to the reviewers. I really appreciate it!  
Keep letting me know what you guys think of the story.

Thanks,  
FortheloveofWrestling

* * *

The next few days, Mark and Brian both felt at a distance from eachother. Brian was trying to decide where his relationship with Mark came into play with his push, and Mark was trying to decide if he should pursue the conflict he felt between them or just let it play out.

The night before Brian was supposed to leave home, they spent the evening having dinner and watching tv. Especially now, Brian didn't want to be seen too much with Mark, but through all of the emotions he was feeling, Brian couldn't stay away from Mark. Even though neither one of them could keep their minds from wandering away from the problems they were having, they couldn't stay away from eachother. Some how, through whatever they were individually dealing with about the other, they were able to relax around eachother.

"Mark, this is getting to be a little weird." Brian chuckled.  
"What is?" Mark asked  
"The silence. I'm leaving tomorrow and I want to be able to enjoy tonight."  
"Well then what are you doing way over there. Get over here." Mark smiled.

Brian moved from the seat he was sitting in and over to Mark who was laying on the couch.

"Are you going to make any room for me or what?" Brian asked, playfully slapping Mark's leg.  
"Nope." Mark smiled.  
"Well then-" Brian started until he noticed the smile on Mark's face. "You're a dirt old man, you know that?" Brian laughed.  
"Hey, you don't _have_ to sit with me." Mark said.  
"Alright then." Brian said as he carefully climbed over Mark, onto the other side of the couch.  
"Mark. This isn't. Going work." Brian stammered, trying to get into a position they could both be comfortable with, as Mark tried to move over a bit to give him room.  
"Whoa!" they both said as they landed with a soft thud on the floor, both laughing hysterically.  
"Alright, so maybe i'll sit up next time." Mark said as he got up, helping Brian to his feet as well.

As Mark was helping Brian to his feet, Mark snaked his arm around Brian's waist, pulling him closer and leaning down to press his lips against Brian's. Brian smiled as their lips met and he let Mark's tongue collided with his. Mark lead them down onto the couch wheren he let his hands roam over Brian's side and finally rest on his hip. Before Brian, at war with not only Mark's mouth at the moment, but with the torment of having to decide what was best for them both, pulled back from Mark's mouth. But after a few seconds Brian missed Mark's sweet, warm mouth. He leaned forward and captured Mark's lips once more. He tugged and bit at his lower lips, making Mark squirm underneath him and let out small little gasps. Finally the two parted once again, and simply looked at eachother with smiles across their faces.

Brian left to his room a short while after. Both men felt a little hurt and pain as their goodnights, once again, brought on the realization of their problems.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next morning, after remembering that this kiss could be there last, Brian hung onto Mark until he was afraid he might miss his plane.

"Call me if you need me or anything, okay?"  
"Yes, Mark, I know." Brian paused. "I'm gonna miss you."  
"Good. I'm going to miss you too." Mark said, holding onto Brian. "But you'll be back soon."  
Brian closed his eyes, not wanting to think about what he would be coming back to.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

On the plane, Brian checked his email and saw a ton of stuff from some of the creative writers. _Who cares about this push?_ Brian thought bitterly, he sighed. He cared about the push, but it wasn't worth his relationship with Mark. He wanted both. He knew it was unfair to hurt Mark when he didn't have anything to do with it. But he couldn't let the other guys think that maybe he did. As the plane was getting ready to land, he could feel the sorrow wash over him.

Mark was laying in bed, waiting for some of the guys to show up so that they could grab dinner. It was then that Mark picked up his phone. He quickly found the person he was looking for- Adam. Mark called his friend, and asked him if he could come over.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Thanks for coming over, Adam." Mark smiled as he let Adam into the room.  
"Anything for you, Mark" Adam teased. "So what's up? What's going on?"  
"I wish I knew." he sighed. "Brian is acting so weird. There's been something that's been bothering him, but he had been breaking free of that and then-"  
"His push?"  
"Yeah. I think that's what's been bothering him, he's worried that our relationship is what's getting him the push." Mark sighed again, as he got up and began to pace the room. "That's what's been bothering him, he said it wasn't an issue anymore, when we first got together, but I can see that he tries to hide it. Now that he's actually getting a push, i'm afraid he thinks that I am the one who pushed for it. And I didn't."

"Have you talked to him about it?" Adam asked.

"No, not really." Mark said as he leaned against a small table. "I don't want to force it from him."  
"Listen Mark, you have to talk to him. I know after that after what I did, it might seem like you're butting in and that trying to get him to talk about it is only going to chase him away, but it won't." Mark looked at him, a bit sadly, his green eyes shining with the light of the room. "Mark, it's easy to see how much he cares about you and how much you care about him. He's probably afraid that if he gets close to you and he gets a push, _you _would think that he was using you. If there is anything else going on, I don't know, but I think that he's probably afraid of hurting you, Mark."

"No, that can't be it."

"Maybe not, but I think that's a huge part of it. Like I said, I don't know if there's more to it, but I would be willing to bet that he's probably more concerned about you. Trust me, I know how it feels to be going out with the Deadman."

Mark played with the things Adam was saying. _It's possible, he's a sweet guy. _He knew as much as he wanted the relationship to work, he wanted to make sure that Brian was okay and never felt any pressure from him. His concern was Brian, maybe Brian's concern was him, he thought to himself.

Mark looked at him and smiled, "And exactly how did you get so smart about relationships?" he laughed.  
"I learned from my mistakes." Adam shrugged. Mark sat down beside him on the couch and grabbed his hand.  
"Adam, I uh, I don't think I ever told you how sorry I am for the way I handled things between us."  
"Mark, please, you have nothing to be sorry for-"  
"No, I do Adam. I could have tried to help _without_ pushing you so far away. For that, I'm sorry Adam."  
"Well don't be, you tried to help me when I needed it and all I did was push _you_ away. I appreciate what you did for me and I'm sorry for how I treated you." Adam said, his last words, barely a whisper.  
"Come here, punk." Mark said as he hugged Adam.  
Adam laughed, "You know, i'm starting to think that it's you."  
"What do you mean?" Mark asked.  
"You make young bucs like me and Brian go a little nuts."  
"No. You guys were already like that." Mark teased.  
"Come on, let's go bug the guys, I'M HUNGRY!" Adam said.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Talk. To. Him." Paul told Brian.  
"It's not that easy, Paul."  
"I know it isn't, but you gotta do it."  
"...And let things happen the way they did before?"  
"Mark's a good guy, he'll understand."  
"I don't know. I guess I'll think about it some more."  
"Okay, well I got to go, but please Bri, talk to him before you do anything dumb."  
"Bye, Paul." Brian said and he clicked his phone off.

He knew what he needed to do, and was just hoping Paul would be the guy to agree with him and make him feel better about the decision. For the few days that he was home, Brian racked his brain for ways to do what his heart didn't want him to do.

Mark, on the other hand, was trying desperately to figure out a way that he could talk to Brian so that they could figure everything out.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was Sunday and Mark was tired. They had just finished a Pay-Per-View and he had had a rough match. To top off the evening, Brian had left him a voice mail that he'd be at the hotel later tonight. He hadn't thought about seeing him tonight. He was ready for a good night's rest and a day off to recupporate before Smackdown! on Tuesday.

When he got back to the hotel, Mark took a much needed shower. His muscles ached and the hot water was soothing. When he got into the shower, he took a deep breath and tried to relax as the water hit him. He sighed as his mind started to drift to Brian. He wanted things to work out between them. Brian was perfect: cute, smart, driven, and absolutely hilarious. What was so heartbreaking was that under that goofy exterior was someone who was hurting just so that he could keep _him_ from hurting. After his shower, Mark sat down and called Brian. It went straight to voicemail.

_Hey Rocketman. I got your message, let me know when you're here and safe. I'll talk to you later. Bye.  
_  
About ten minutes later Brian called him back.

"Hey."

"Hey, that was quick."

"Yeah, I had my phone off, but I'm here and safe. I've been here, just forgot to turn my phone back on."  
"How were your days off?"  
"Not as good as I would have liked. Are you busy right now? I was hoping I could go over and talk to you."  
"A little tired, but come on over, I need to talk to you too."

After they hung up, both men cringed at what the other wanted to talk about.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Knock._

"Hey sweetheart" Mark greeted Brian, who reached up and wrapped his arms around Mark and placed a kiss on the bigger man's cheek.

"Wow. What was that for?" Mark asked, smile on his face.

"Just because." Brian replied, his goofy smile already marking his face.

As they moved to the couch, Brian noticed that Mark was walking with a slight limp.

"Are you okay, Mark?" Brian said, concern clearly heard in his voice.

"What? Oh, yeah. I'm fine. Just a little sore."

"Rough match?"

"Yeah, but i've been through worse."

"Did you go see the doc?" Brian asked as they sat down at the table.

"No, i'll be okay, don't worry."

"I do worry." he said as he placed his hand over Mark's.

"Is this what you wanted to talk about, Brian? My aging body?" Mark laughed.

"No, I... uh." Brian gave a large sigh followed by a large breath. "I wanted to talk about us."

At the words, Mark could feel the ache starting to form.

"I, um, crap..." Brian chuckled nervously.

"Spit it out, Rocketman." Mark said, silently pleading that Brian wouldn't say what Mark was afraid he was going to say.

Brian looked down at their hands, he could feel tears wanting to build up in his eyes. He swallowed and forced them to keep from forming. _It'll be easier for you both if you just say it. Just get it over with._

"I don't think that this is working out." he said, feeling the same ache as Mark now that the words left his mouth.

Mark leaned forward in his seat, "Brian, no, you don't mean that. Why don't-"

"No, Mark. I'm serious. This isn't working and I think it's best if we just end it before someone ends up getting hurt."

That made Mark a little angry.

"Before someone ends up getting hurt? You don't think someone is going to get hurt now?" he said as Brian pulled his hand away from Mark.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have let this get as far as it did. Why do you think I was so hesitant going into and during this relationship? I didn't want anyone getting too close and wind up getting hurt, Mark."

"I don't know, tell me, why _were_ you hesitant? I don't think that's why. I think that's just some BS excuse." Mark said, getting up from his seat and pacing.

"It's the truth. I made a mistake, okay? I'm sorry if I let you think this was anything more than just a small fling." Brian said, getting up and feeling his own anger start to build.

"We've been together for not even a month and all you've wanted was to keep us some 'dirty little secret'"

Brian flinched at the thought that Mark thought he didn't care about him and only wanted to hide their relationship, especially because he knew that it partly true.

"Please, I didn't come to argue, Mark. We weren't going to work out anyway, you're you and i'm me." Brian said as he let his head hang low.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Mark said, feeling the anger pass.

"I don't know. I just know that this wasn't going to work and i'm sorry that you thought it was more than it was. Mark, that's all I can tell you okay? I'm sorry."

Mark walked over to Brian who was now sitting on the couch. Mark kneeled down and placed his hands on Brian's legs.

"Brian, just tell me the truth. If you really meant what you said, you're eyes wouldn't be so watery right now. Please, Brian. I don't want to lose you, but if you don't tell me the truth, we can't try and fix this."

Feeling the tears well up in his eyes, Brian leaned forward, his head against Mark's and he placed his hands on the back of Mark's head.

"I'm sorry Mark, you can't fix this. I wish you could. I'm so sorry Mark, I didn't want to hurt you. That was never my intention; I thought I could handle it this time, but I can't."

Mark placed his hand on Brian's cheek, "Rocketman, let me help you. Let me help you handle whatever it is you feel you can't."

Brian shook his head, "I'm so sorry, Mark." he said as he placed his lips over Mark's momentarily. He stood up and walked over to the door and hesitated long enough to take a last look at Mark, who was still knelling on the floor, and to wipe at the tears he felt spill over, and finally walked out.

* * *

_Aw._ I feel bad for writing this. Hopefully things will work out though. Mark's gotta win the guy, _right?_


	10. Chapter 10

AN: Thanks to my reviewers! That's all this time, just thanks. =]  
-FortheloveofWrestling

* * *

The next day, Mark spent the time brooding in his room. He wasn't even sure if he should be angry or upset. Should he try to talk to Brian again? Or should he let him go? Feeling the anger get the best of him, he decided that letting go was the only thing he could do. So Brian didn't want him, big deal. It was too much drama for him anyway. He had enough to deal with as it is, there was no need to bring in extra baggage. By nightfall, Mark was able to get himself out of his slump and have dinner with some of the guys.

Adam stopped by Mark's room before heading down to the lobby to meet everyone.

"Open up, Deadman." Adam said as he knocked on the door.

"Hey. You ready to go?" Mark asked as he stepped out of the room, closing the door behind him.

Adam looked at him a bit confused. "Isn't Brian coming with us tonight?"

Mark snapped at him, "No, not tonight, not ever."

Adam was more confused now than he was before. "What do you mean? What happened?"

"Hell if I know what happened," Mark said, waiting for the elevator doors to open. "I don't know. Something about us not working out is what he explained to me." Mark said shaking his head as he stepped into the elevator.

"What?" Adam said, shocked at what Mark had said. "Why?"

"I don't know, Adam." Mark said with a sigh, "You coming or not?"

Adam walked into the elevator, still shocked. "Did you guys talk about-"

"Yes, and it didn't work." Mark said, cutting him off. "He's probably right though, it's for the best I suppose."

"I'm sorry, Mark. I really thought if you guys talked about it, you guys could get everything cleared up."

"Don't worry about it Adam, it just didn't work out." Mark said as he gave a small, sad smile to Adam.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After dinner, Mark and the others went into the hotel bar for a few drinks. Mark reasoned that tonight was a good night to get a little drunk. He made sure Adam knew not to go heavy on the drinks before he started in on his own drinking mission. As usual, there was a bar tab that needed to be put on someone's bill so Mark and Hunter did the usual game of blackjack.

"HA! Too bad you're good luck charm wasn't here tonight, Mark. You could have used him." Hunter told Mark.

"Hunter, you won the game, so just shut the hell up now, alright?" Mark warned, already more than a little drunk.

Hunter, not realizing the huge mistake he was making, continued, "Nope, sorry, 'Taker, after the gloating you did before, i've got this coming to me."

"Hunter, just stop, or else you'll have a lot more coming to you." Adam tried to interrupt.

"What? You and your boy get into a fight or something, Mark?" Hunter said, feeling confidant and walking right up to Mark, getting in his face. "Come on big man, what's eating you? The kid finally wise up to your cradle-robbing and dump your ass?" he laughed. By this time, both Adam and Ken were trying to keep Hunter away from Mark, and failing. Mark having finally had enough of Hunter's remarks, stood up and decked him straight in the mouth, causing Adam and Ken to fall with Hunter. Paul and Jeff were trying to keep Mark from further hurting Hunter. Hunter got up and tried to lunge at Mark, who was already calmed down and was sitting back in his seat, finishing the last of his beer and taking a shot of Jack, but this time Paul grabbed his arm and jerked him back around. Mark stood up once again, his hands up in the air.

"I'm through with all of this. I'm heading upstairs now."

Adam and Ken, having the least amount of alcohol in their bodies, thought it would be best if they helped Mark to his room, to prevent anymore bruised jaws. Although Mark was a 'good' drunk, Adam and Ken had to helped him stay on his feet while they were in the elevator.

"Hell, Vince is going to have a fit when he hears about this." Ken said, trying to keep Mark from leaning too far forward and falling on his face.

Adam, trying to keep Mark's legs from giving out on him, replied, "I know. But seeing as it was a drunk altercation between two guys who have him wrapped around their finger, hopefully he'll just yell for a while and that'll be the end of it."

"So what was this all about anyway?" Ken asked.

Adam, hesitated, and then decided Mark was probably too drunk to remember whether he had said anything to anyone, "he and Brian broke it off."

"Oh wow. No wonder Hunter set him off." Ken, thinking it was none of his business anyway, didn't press for anything else.

Finally getting to his room, Adam fished through Mark's pocket for the keycard to his room and once he found it, the three men maneuvered themselves in and laid Mark down on the bed.

"Alright, i'm going to head back down to the bar and see how the others are doing." Ken said.

"Okay, i'll be down in a minute." Adam told him.

When Ken had left, Adam started to undo Mark's boot laces and take them off, throwing them somewhere he wouldn't trip over them the next morning. Hearing Mark mumble something he looked up at him.

"I'm not passed out yet, kid. You can head back down, I can take care of myself now." Mark said through barely open eyes.

"Think of it as me getting what I deserve for making you do it for me for a few months." he chuckled.

Adam moved to Mark's shirt and carefully pulled it off of him, and next moving to his belt. He undid the buckle and pulled it off as well. Mark mumbled something else that Adam didn't quite understand.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" he laughed as he pulled the blanket underneath Mark.

Mark lifted his head and smiled. "I said I remember when I used to do that to you and when you _weren't_ drunk too."

"Okay, Mark, you're seriously wasted." he laughed. "I'll check on you tomorrow, okay?" he said as he leaned down and placed a kiss on Mark's cheek. Mark just nodded and mumbled 'goodnight'.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Too early. _Mark thought at the knocking on his door. And for a moment, he smiled at thought that it was his usual early morning wake up call, _Brain_. But it quickly faded as he remembered that it wouldn't be Brian knocking. With a sigh and a growl, Mark made his way to the door and opened it to see Adam smiling at him.

"'Morning sunshine."

"Hey Adam." Mark looked down at his hand on the door knob. "What the hell did I drink last night? And why in the world is my hand killing me?" Mark asked, letting Adam in and examining the redness and swelling in his hand.

He laughed, "the usual beer and Jack Daniels, and your hand? Well, I suppose it might have something to do with the bruise on Hunter's jaw?"

"What? What happened? He alright?"

Adam paused for a moment, not sure if he wanted to tell him or not, "You guys were both pretty drunk and yeah, he's alright. Besides the bruise."

"Shit."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

At the arena, Mark went straight to his locker room, wanting to avoid anyone and everyone, especially Vince, who he'd heard was already looking for him. After getting his stuff settled with the agents, Mark turned the corner to head to catering and was spotted by Vince, who was motioning him over. Sighing, Mark walked over to him and waited for Vince to finish talking to one of the referees.

"Mark, you look like shit, my friend." Vince told him.

"Thanks." Mark said, rolling his eyes.

"I'm not too sure on what the hell happened last night, but whatever happened it was, don't let it happen again, got it?"

"Got it." Mark said as he nodded, surprised that that was all he was going to get from the boss.

Walking into the catering room, Mark looked around and once again let out a sigh when he noticed the table his friends were sitting at was right next to the one Brian was sitting at with his. When Mark's eyes rested on Brian, Brian's did the same, but both men quickly turned their gazes to another direction. Mark walked over to his friends and greeted everyone at the table, who were all making comments at how horrible he looked after last night, however no one mentioned the little incident. It was Mark who walked behind Hunter and placed his hands on either shoulder and leaned in to whisper something to him. Hunter got up from his seat and followed Mark just a few feet away from the table. Interested in what was happening, Brian couldn't help but watch them.

"Listen Hunter" Mark started, "sorry about the shiner, I guess I had a little too much to drink and I wasn't thinking straight." he said with a slight smile and shrug of the shoulders.

Hunter gave a small laugh and brought his hand up to his jaw, "Don't worry about, i'm just upset I got knocked out and even after my win, the bill wasn't enough to put me ahead of you."

They both laughed and embraced in a brotherly hug and then went back to the table.

_Wonder what that was about?_ Brian thought to himself.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

By the time the show actually started, Mark was already beat. Getting into drunken bar fights wasn't something he should really do too often. He didn't really want to be around anyone and didn't feel like listening to the silence of his locker room, so he came out and sat at the Gorilla position with Vince and a few others. He sat through the show and discussed the matches of the people going in and out of the curtains.

Looking at the sheet of paper in front of him, Mark cringed inwardly. Brian had a match next. Just as he looked up from the paper, he saw Brian walking down the corridor. When he got near the entrance, Brian noticed Mark sitting at the table and looked down immediately, not sure he wanted to see those green orbs before his match. His music hit and he paused for a moment to put a smile on his face, and finally he walked through the curtains. Mark had his attention set to the screen in front of him the whole time, grinning when he hit something good and grimacing when he would take a bump.

As he sat and watched the match, Mark could feel his anger and sadness slip away, he knew he couldn't stay upset for very long, he liked the kid too much to hold onto those feelings. Brian stumbled through the curtains once again after the match had ended and as he made his way past the table Mark was sitting at, Mark looked up and him and grabbed his wrist. Brian froze as he felt Mark's hand on his body.

"That was a really good match, kid." Mark said with a forgiving smile.

"Oh, uh...th-thanks." Brian stammered, as Mark let him go.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After the show had ended, Mark caught a ride with Adam and Ken, back to the hotel. They asked if he wanted to head down and get dinner with the other guys.

"No, thanks. I better keep myself here and out of trouble." he laughed.

They both offered their company, but he said that he'd be fine and they should go on before the others started without them.

As they were chatting outside of Mark's room, Brian and Matthew came out of the elevator laughing like a bunch of eight year olds, catching everyone's attention. Mark crossed his arms and leaned against the doorway, head pointing down.

"You sure you're going to be alright? I don't want to see you in the morning with a room full of empty bottles and your room a mess." Adam asked again.

"Yeah come on Mark, we'll make sure everyone keeps the alcohol to a minimum this time." Ken added.

Mark looked over at the suddenly quiet men walking in their direction and then back at the two men in front of him. "No, go ahead. I told you i'll be fine."

"Okay, you coming with us to Atlanta tomorrow?" Adam asked and Mark nodded. "Okay, i'll call you tomorrow. We're going to leave early."

Adam and Ken turned and said hello and goodnight to Brian and Matthew, who had just passed them in the hallway. Mark waited for Adam and Ken to head to the elevator and for Matthew to start looking for his room key before he said "'Night guys, see you in Atlanta tomorrow."

Matthew looked at Brian for a moment and then to Mark, "'Night, Mark."

Mark waited for a second as Brian just stood there, head turned to his feet while Mark and Matthew both waited for him to respond. Finally Mark let out a small chuckle and then disappeared into his room.

"What the hell was that about, Brian?" Matthew said, "Why didn't you say anything?"

"He doesn't want to hear anything from me, not anymore." Brian said and then whispered "He's just being polite."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

That's how the next two weeks passed. Mark would say hi or try to talk to Brian, causally, as a friend would, but all Brian did was mumble a response and then find some way to get out of the conversation. More and more Mark was feeling as if he'd gone back in time. Brian acted just like he had when he first moved back to Smackdown!. Ignoring and avoiding him. Even the other guys were trying to get everyone's friendship levels even again. Adam or Jeff would invite one to dinner or something and forget to mention the other was going to be there, but even then Brian never said more than a few words to Mark. With everyone else, he was fine, it was just Mark he wouldn't talk to, he barely even made eye contact with him most of the time. By the end of those two weeks, Mark wasn't even interested in talking with him anymore. He figured if Brian was going to be immature about it, then he wouldn't even care enough to acknowledge him anymore.

* * *

Hope you enjoyed this chapter, please REVIEW. I'll have the next one up ASAP, but finals start on Monday. "/


	11. Chapter 11

AN: THANKS to the people reviewing, **TheVampireLucinda **and **Ashura77!  
**As for this chapter, ahaha. This was totally NOT the way I saw things happening. I think i'm developing muses and now they're working on their own.  
Anyway, I hope you enjoy this.  
-FortheloveofWrestling

* * *

Mark and Adam were checking into the hotel, since Ken had just recently been injured and Adam didn't think Mark was taking the break up as well as he said he was, Adam asked if they could room together.

"Thanks for keeping me company Mark. I know how you like your privacy." Adam said, secretly hating himself for secretly enjoying how close they've gotten since Mark and Brian split. He wasn't falling for Mark again, he was just glad that they could get close again.

"Don't worry about it, Adam. It'll be just like the old days." Mark joked, wiggling his eyebrows.

Adam laughed, "I'm sorry, but I don't think that will be happening this time around."

"Too bad." Mark replied as he reached for the button on the elevator. When the doors opened, Mark and Adam stepped in and just as Adam reached to punch the button for their level they heard someone shout.

"Hold the elevator!" Matthew and Brian said, running up to the door. Once he noticed who was already in the elevator, Brian's goofy smile faded from his face.

"Why are you guys in a hurry?" Adam said, noticing the change in facial expression on both Mark and Brain.

Matthew, who was trying to catch his breath, explained it to him, "Rib gone wrong. Show's. Pretty angry."

Adam laughed, "Oh, sounds like a good reason to run." After Matthew caught his breathe, both he and Adam looked at Mark, who was burning a hole through one side of the elevator, and then at Brian who was doing the same to the elevator door. Both Adam and Matthew just chuckled and shook their heads, grabbing the attention of the other two.

"What?" Mark and Brian said in unison. Only making Adam and Matthew laugh even more.

_Ding._

The sound of the elevator doors opening brought everyone's attention back to getting into their rooms.

_How do we manage to get on the same floor everytime? _Brian thought to himself as he made his way down the hall.

With a quick look over his shoulder he noticed that Mark's room was right next to the elevator while his was on the other end.

_Good. At least that will give us a little distance. _He thought again. _Wait. Are they sharing a room?_

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After they had settled their stuff and themselves into their room, Mark and Brian laid down and started watching TV. There was a commercial for Universal Studios.

"Oh man, that studio tour looks pretty awesome. I've always wanted to go on it." Adam told Mark.

"Really? We should go tomorrow. What do you think?" Mark asked, looking over to the other bed.

Adam sat up, "Yeah? You'll go with me, for real?" Mark laughed.

"Of course, Adam." Adam gave him a big grin of thanks.

"Brian mentioned that he really loved the Jurassic Park ride." Once the words left his mouth, Mark questioned why he had even thought to mention it; he didn't think about it, he just said it. He quickly glanced towards Adam who now had an even bigger grin on his face.

"Go invite him." he urged.

"What? No, I don't even know why I said that."

"You're a bad liar, Mark." Adam said standing up and sitting on the edge of Mark's bed.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Mark tried the both of them.

Adam just laughed and stretched out on the bed next to Mark, his head in his hands, elbows on the bed, looking straight at Mark.

"You. Still. Like. Brian. You. Still. Like. Brian." Adam sang, earning himself a pillow in his face.

Mark looked down at the remote in his hands and then back at Adam, "Just drop it. It doesn't matter anyway."

"What if I invite him and Matthew and some other guys."

"Oh, so you're going to start telling me when you invite him somewhere now?" Adam had to laugh at being caught.

"Come on, Marky. I hate seeing you like this. It's. So pathetic." Adam joked and earning himself another shot with a pillow.

"I'll go to go with you, Adam. And if you decide to invite anyone else that's fine, but don't expect me to try to talk to Brian anymore.

"Okay. That's fair enough." Adam jumped off the bed and grabbed his phone and started texting someone.

Noticing the dangerous grin on his face, Mark asked what he was doing.

"Texting." Adam said.

"I can see that. _Who_ are you texting?"

"Matthew." Adam looked up at Mark. "I asked them both to come over for a second." Mark sat up with a scowl on his face. "Calm down. I told him to tell Brian that it was nothing to do with _you_ guys. Just that we thought of something for tomorrow."

With a sigh and something Adam didn't quite understand, Mark laid back down and hoped to fall asleep before they came over.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

About 15 minutes later, there was a knock at the door and much to his dismay Mark was still awake. He threw a hard look at Adam as he sat up.

Pointing to Mark on his way to answer the door, Adam warned him, "behave yourself." to which Mark just rolled his eyes.

"Hey guys, come on in." Matthew walked in and sat down at the table in the room, Mark was now sitting in one of the sofa seats, while Brian and Adam took to the couch. In no way, did Brian want to be there. After having seen that Mark and Adam were now sharing a room, he was feeling less and less guilty over breaking up with Mark, but he refused to feel jealous.

He didn't want to be there in _their_ room and he didn't want to hear whatever Adam had called them over for.

Just as Adam began to speak, his cell phone rang.

Looking down at the caller ID, he stopped what he was saying and looked to Mark.

"Can you tell them, it's my mom." Mark snorted and shook his head. _He must have planned that. This was too perfect for him not to have planned it._ "Tell her I said hi," he told Adam as he excused himself and went into the bedroom. After a few moments of awkward silence, Mark finally spoke.

"I made the mistake of mentioning something" he paused for a second and looked to Brian, who sat with his eyes darted to the ground, "to Adam and he was wondering if you guys wanted to join us tomorrow at Universal Studios."

Matthew looked at Brian who was pleading with him to say no. "Sure, Mark. Thanks. That sounds fun."

Brian sighed and slouched back against the couch.

"Don't look like that Brian. You don't _have_ to go. We just thought we'd invite you guys." Mark said, feeling like Brian was just being immature about their whole situation.

"Yeah Brian. Come on. They're just being nice. Get over it." Matthew whispered to Brian.

Brian felt himself grow a little angry, or maybe jealous. "Stop trying to be so polite to me, Mark. I'm not a kid, you don't have to pretend to like me or continue to be my friend. Stop acting like that already."

"What in the hell are you talking about, Brian?" Mark said, both angry and confused.

"Just stop." Brian said.

Matthew sighed and looked over to Mark. "Thanks, but I guess we'll just hang out here tomorrow though."

"No, I'll go." Brian said. "But because Matthew is my friend and he wants to go." Brian added, looking at Mark.

"Fine. I'm only asking because I wanted to go with Adam, and he wanted to invite you guys." Mark said getting up from his seat.

"Yeah, we'll since you just want to go with him, I guess we'll try to stay out of your way." Brian said, as he left the room, leaving Mark and Matthew.

Mark stood there, confused at how the conversation had even reached the level it did. Mark wasn't even sure what the point of their 'argument' was.

Hearing the door slam, Adam said goodbye to his mother and walked back into the main room. "What the hell happened? Where's Brian?" he asked.

Mark started towards the door, grabbing his keycard from the table, "this what you wanted to happen?" Mark said as he passed Adam and walked through the door.

Adam looked at Matthew and shook his head, not sure what had just happened either.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mark wasn't really sure where he was going, but he needed to get out. He took a quick stroll through the hotel garden and parked himself on a bench.

About two hours after Mark had stormed out, Adam was growing concerned. He had tried calling Mark a few times, but after the fourth time, it was going straight to voicemail. Adam knew Mark was okay, he just needed time to maybe think over what happened, but he was still worried.

Still sitting on the bench, Mark was indeed thinking over what had happened. He still wasn't sure where the conversation took a turn. _And this was over a trip to universal Studios? _He thought. He tried to think if maybe he sounded a certain way that would make Brian think that he was pretending to like him still. _Why did he blow up like that?_ he thought to himself. _This is all getting too ridiculous. _Feeling the growl of his stomach, Mark stood up, stretching a bit and turning his phone back on. _Four hours. _That's how long he'd been sitting there. He checked his pockets looking for the keys to the rental car. _Damn._ He had left them in the room. He checked his pockets for his wallet. Feeling it in his back pocket, he headed back into the hotel and to the restaurant.

Inside, he ordered his food and his beer. After finishing his dinner and thinking some more, he looked at the time again and noted that it was already late. He thought about calling Adam to let him know he was downstairs and okay, but changed his mind. Getting up, he headed to the only place he knew would be able to hopefully sort things out in his mind- the bar.

After finally finishing the two beers that he'd been nursing and a shot of Jack Daniels, he decided that he was through. He didn't want to make a fool of himself without his friends there to help him out. Sometime in between the three drinks, his thoughts drifted to Adam. He started feeling guilty for what he said to Adam. Of course this wasn't what he wanted to happen when he suggested that they invite the other two guys, he shouldn't have tried to lay the blame on him. It wasn't his fault, if anything he was just trying to get Mark and Brian to realize what was in front of them, _right?_

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Mark's POV_

Getting up from the bar at around 1am, Mark was still very sober and was able to make it back up to the room on his own. Inside the elevator, on his way up to the room, he still couldn't believe that all this drama had occurred during a conversation about _Universal Studios_. Finally, when he arrived back to the room, he quietly opened the door and shut it behind him. He saw that all the lights were off except for the bedside lamp. He walked into the bedroom and saw that Adam was asleep in his bed, his phone sitting on his pillow.

_Shit. He was waiting for me to call him. Why didn't you call him? _

Mark moved closer to the bed and picked up the phone and connected it to the charger on the desk. He turned around and looked at Adam who was now curled up on the bed, hair slightly in his face.

_Beautiful. Still just as beautiful and adorable when he sleeps. _

_Where did that come from? Why would I think that?_

_Look at him. Just sleeping there he's gorgeous._

_Shut up, Mark._

Mark shook the thoughts from his head and went over to his bag, grabbed some clothes and then headed into the bathroom. When he emerged he looked over at his bed and then to Adam, who was still sleeping peacefully. Mark wasn't sure when he had made the decision to do it, but instead of going over to his bed, he walked passed it and over to Adam's.

_What the hell are you doing, Mark? This is the absolute last thing either one of you needs right now. Don't do this to him. He doesn't need you messing with him. And you don't need it either. You still have feelings for Brian, as much as you might pretend like you don't. Why do you need to do this?_

He mentally questioned everything his body was effortlessly doing. He pulled the blanket from underneath Adam and carefully laid down next to him. Mark found a comfortable position and pulled the blanket over them. Adam shifted slightly and looked up at Mark. Still half asleep, he asked if Mark was okay and Mark nodded, placing a small kiss on Adam's cheek.

_I am now, for the moment at least._

That was the last thought that he had before Adam curled up next to him, placing an arm around Mark's waist, threw a leg over one of Mark's and rested his head in the crook of Mark's shoulder, with Mark running his fingers over Adam's side.

_Whatever this is, please don't let this be a mistake._

With a small sigh and Adam wrapped around him, Mark drifted off into a restful sleep.

* * *

_Hm. _So basically, I have NO idea where I am going with this. (As if it was really up to me at this point. These muses, if that is how this chapter came to be, might be taking over.) _Help?_

REVIEW!


	12. Chapter 12

AN: Thanks to all those who have recently added this fic to your alerts and/or faves! To my readers, remind me to never mention Universal Studios in anything else... EVER!  
This was pretty difficult to write seeing as I couldn't just ignore what happened in the last chapter. lol So pretty much, I'm screwed for the next chapter, seeing as I wanted to end this chapter with the next one. UGH. Nevermind. In the words of Tim Gunn, i'll 'make it work.'  
-FortheloveofWrestling

_

* * *

_

Shit. Why did I do this? I'm only causing more problems.

Mark slightly open his eyes and although he felt so relaxed and comfortable laying there, Adam still draped over his body, Mark couldn't help but question the decision he made to sleep in the same bed as Adam. With a sigh, he put his arm under his head and closed his eyes.

"Mark?" he heard Adam whisper.

Mark opened his eyes again and looked down at Adam, "yeah?"

"Are you okay?" Adam asked, looking up to meet Mark's eyes.

"Adam, I'm sorry." Mark said, hoping he wouldn't be hurting Adam.

"It's okay, Mark, because I'm not."

"I don't know why I came here."

"It's alright, I don't mind. I'm glad you did, brought back some nice memories." Adam laughed.

"But I don't know what I thought -" Adam sat up a little, keeping his eyes on Mark's.

"I know you didn't mean for this to be more than what it is." Adam said, a sad smile on his face, "You were probably a little drunk and-"

This time it was Mark who cut Adam off, "I wasn't drunk."

Adam gave him a quizzical look, and then continued "well, with everything that happened yesterday, you probably just needed the contact or something."

Mark gave him a small smile and Adam asked "we're you going to get up now?"

"This early, you've forgotten things about me, Adam." Adam grinned and took back his place at Mark's side

_I just needed the contact, that's right. ...Or something._

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

About an hour later, the two men finally got out of bed.

"So, what are we doing today?" Adam asked, as he finished drying his hair, Mark just starting to do the same.

"I thought we had a little tour to go on today?"

"Well we did, but I didn't think you'd want to go still so Matthew and I decided to just call it off."

Mark walked over to wear Adam was standing, in front of the bathroom mirror and leaned against the door frame, "After all that drama, we're not even going to go?"

"I didn't think you'd want to."

"Well, call Matthew up and let him know we're still going." Mark started to turn and then looked at Adam through his reflection in the mirror, "I told you I wanted to go with you, so drama or not, I still want to go with you."

Adam smiled and then followed Mark out of the bathroom to call Matthew.

Adam grabbed his phone from where Mark had placed it the night before and sat down on the disheveled bed. He pushed the key for his recent calls and scrolled through Mark's name until he saw Matthew's. AS he was about to push the button, he looked over at Mark who was sitting with his back to him, and had his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands.

"Are you sure?" Adam asked.

"Hm?" Mark said, turning around, "oh, yeah. Call them up. Tell 'em I want to leave soon, so hurry up and get ready."

Adam hesitated another second and then hit the call key.

"Hello?" Matthew answered, a bit out of breathe.

"Hey Matthew. Did I wake you up?"

"No, Brian just slapped me in the gut." Matthew said, watching Brian burning a hole through him for answering the phone.

"Oh." Adam chuckled, "listen, Mark and I were wondering if you... and Brian still wanted to go?"

"Oh, um, yeah." Matthew answered, without giving Brian a choice. "Is Mark okay after what happened?"

"Yeah he's cool now, just a little temper tantrum, I think." Adam said, getting a cold stare from Mark.

"That's good."

"How about on your side?"

"Denial. About everything."

"We're going to need to come up with a plan or something." Adam joked, making Mark raise his eyebrows in suspicion, "alright, the Deadman is killing me with his stares, he said to hurry up and get ready, he wants to go early."

Matthew laughed a bit, getting a strange look from Brian, "Okay, give us an hour." he said, getting an even stranger look from Brian now.

"Okay, cool. See you later." Adam clicked the phone off and looked over to Mark, smiling.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Go take a shower. Hurry." Matthew told Brian, as he searched the contents of his suitcase for something to wear, throwing a pair of Brian's jeans at him.

Catching them, he asked, "Why? What's going on?"

"We're going to Universal Studios with Adam and Mark."

Brian's eyes opened wide, "what? I thought we weren't going to go?"

"Well, Mark changed his mind. So go. Hurry."

Mumbling and grumbling, Brian grabbed a t-shirt from his bag and went into the bathroom.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

At around 10a.m., Mark and Adam met with Matthew and Brian in the lobby. They grabbed a small breakfast and then headed to the parking garage. Things were pretty quiet at breakfast, it was mostly Adam and Matthew keeping the silence from surrounding them, with Mark and Brian sporadically chiming in.

On the way to the parking garage, Mark was joking with Matthew about the number he had given him during the Undertaker/Edge & La Familia feud. Adam slowed down a bit and walked behind them with Brian. At first, Brian felt a little resentment at Adam, but pushed it down and loosened up a bit.

In the car, on their way to the amusement park, Mark drove with Adam in the passenger seat and Matthew and Brian in the back. Feeling the tension leave them all, even Mark and Brian were able to talk like civilized people about whatever they happened to be talking about. Periodically, though, Brian would get a strange feeling when he would see Mark and Adam sharing a smile or anytime that Mark would playfully punch Adam when ever he saw a Volkswagon Beetle, or something similar he claimed was 'close enough.'

When they finally arrived, they all got out of the car and walked up to the front where they were they met some man that Adam had called last night. The man escorted them through the front of the park and to where they could take a private studio tour. When they boarded the private trolley, Adam went in first, followed by Brian and then Mark and Matthew. Adam took a seat and Brian sat in the one behind him. As Mark boarded, Brian felt nervous when Mark smiled at him and then took the seat next to Adam; Brian gave him a slight smile and then relaxed with a sigh. _He doesn't want to sit next to you anymore. _He thought to himself as Matthew sat next to him.

Throughout the tour, they were marveling at the movie sets and pointing out the ones they recognized. Mark and Adam shared a big laugh at the props from their friend's movie, The Scorpion King. Although Brian was having a blast and was really glad he came, seeing Mark and Adam share little whispers always brought back that little feeling in the pit of his stomach. It certainly didn't make him feel any better when he noticed Mark take hold of Adam's hand and whisper something to him that made Adam smile ear-to-ear. Brian turned from them and started talking to Matthew about some of the stuff they were seeing, hoping he could take his mind completely off of Mark and Adam's little flirtations.

"Finally!" Brian cheered, feeling much better about the day and choosing to ignore whatever Mark and Brian had going on.

"No way! It's too cold for that." Matthew said, clutching his jacket around him. It had just started lightly raining, but it was very cold.

"Wuss. I'll get on with you, Brian." Adam said, sneezing right after. Brian looked at him and then smiled.

"No, it's okay, Adam. You sound like you're getting a cold and the ride isn't going to help. You're going to get soaked, get phenomena and then Vince will be on my ass, i'll never hear the end of it." Brian laughed.

"He's right, Adam. I'm sorry, but i'm not letting you on that ride." Adam pouted, and then sneezed again, they were right.

"That's not fair though, Brian's been waiting all day for this." Adam spoke up.

"It's okay, you'll just owe me next time." he said.

Mark looked up at the dinosaur next to him and smiled, "I'll go with you, Brian."

The other three men looked at him and then Adam and Matthew looked at Brian.

"No, it's okay, Mark, you don't have to."

"Come on," Mark said looking at him and smiling, "I want to."

By this time, Matthew and Adam both had huge grins on their faces.

"But first..." Mark walked over to a stand and bought a few rain ponchos. "okay, now i'm ready." he said when he returned. Earning himself laughs from the other guys.

"Seriously, it's okay, Mark."

"Too late." Mark said as he took a hold of Brian's arm, "You two stay put, I don't want you guys getting lost... or anything." Mark warned, making sure Adam knew he was specifically talking to him.

With that, Brian and Mark headed to the VIP line of the ride and finally got up to the start. Mark handed the ponchos over to the attendant who placed two of them on the seat and waited for Mark and Brian to sit before he handed them the other ones to place over their laps.

"This is so lame, Mark." Brian teased.

"What? There are other people doing the same thing." Mark said, as the lap bar came down and Brian just laughed and shook his head.

As the ride started and the 'boat' they were in headed up the tracks, Mark sighed. "This thing feels great on that back."

Brian laughed again and suddenly felt a hand over his, and he looked up to see Mark looking at him. "Now, this ride isn't going to let these other people hear me scream like a girl, is it?"

Brian smiled and shook his head, laughing at Mark's smile. "Good."

"Geez. It's freezing." Brian said, as they passed a couple of dinosaurs.

"I know. You're hands are freezing." Mark said as he put his hand over Brian's again and tried to rub some warmth into them.

"Thanks for coming with me, Mark. You didn't have to though."

"I know. But I wanted to." he paused. "I'm glad you decided to come." Mark whispered.

"Me too." Brian smiled, "here it comes."

"What?" Mark looked in front of him, the coaster was plunged into darkness and flashing lights and sirens.

As the 'boat' moved forward, a huge Tyrannosaurus Rex popped out of the roof above them, and then...

"Oh shit!" Mark yelled as their coaster was plummeting towards the pool of water below them.

"Yeaaah! Woooow!" Brian yelled, as they were drenched in water.

Climbing out of the coaster, Mark and Brian made their way back down to where Adam and Matthew were left.

"Geez! You guys must be freezing." Adam said, handing Mark the jacket he had given him earlier.

"Why in the world did I get on this thing again?" Mark asked, refusing the jacket.

Adam just shook his head and smiled, knowing the exact reason he went on the ride.

"It was fun, though, wasn't it?" Brian answered.

Mark looked at him and then laughed, "Okay, I have to admit, it was really fun." Mark looked at them all and then to Adam, "I'm sorry you didn't get a chance to ride it." he said, placing his hands on Adam's shoulders.

Brian saw this, and for a moment, remembered that Mark was there for Adam, not for him.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When they got back to the hotel, the four men made their way to the elevator. For some reason, Brian had gone back to being shy and quiet. Adam and Matthew excitedly talked about their day as they walked into the elevator, and once inside, Mark pushed the button for their floor. He crossed his arms over his chest and looked up to catch Brian looking at him.

"You have fun?" he asked.

"Hm? Oh, yeah! It was tons of fun." Brian said, trying to sound as happy as he could.

"And you almost didn't want to go." Matthew added, as he and Adam rummage through their bag of souvenirs.

Mark smiled and looked over to Brian again, and he had a frown on his face. Mark tried to decide whether it was whatever had been bothering him periodically throughout the day or because Matthew was hinting at what had happened the night before.

When they got out of the elevator, Adam and Matthew were still looking at their stuff. When they got to the door Adam pulled his keycard out and opened the door for them. Before Brian was able to walk inside, Mark grabbed his arm.

"I, uh, I don't really know or understand what the hell happened last night, but i'm sorry if I said or did anything to offend or upset you and make you angry towards me." Mark explained to Brain.

With a slight frown still on his face, Brian looked at Mark and thought for a moment. "You don't even know what you did that made me upset?"

Mark took a moment, trying to decipher what Brian was hiding, "No, I don't. But whatever-"

Brian laughed and started to walk away from Mark, towards his own room.

"Brian!" Mark called, trying to catch up to him. "Wait. Why don't you just tell me what's bothering you instead of just running away like some little kid."

"Are you serious, Mark?" Brian turned to look at Mark, anger, jealousy and annoyance in his eyes. "You don't know what's bothering me?"

"No. No, I don't know why last night you blow up over nothing. Or why today you've been pissed off, normal, pissed off, normal and now pissed off again."

"The looks. The whispers. The flirting. Hand holding. Sharing a fuckin' room!" Brian yelled at a confused Mark.

"What are you talking about? Adam? You've been acting like a five year old because i'm sharing a room with Adam?" Mark asked, getting a bit angry himself.

"No. Yes." Brian sighed. "Geez, I don't even know anymore." he said, throwing up his arms. He continued, "I'm probably just mad because you're over it and I can't get past it."

"Over it? How can I be 'over it'?" Mark asked, "I just about begged for you to give us a real shot."

"Yeah, and now you're all over Adam. Sharing a room, flirting, the little whispers you guys share." Brian said, making himself feel worse.

"That's just because Adam and I have been through a lot and we're just comfortable with eachother." Mark sighed and looked down at the floor and then back to Brian, "You never even gave me the chance to whisper things in your ear. You never gave me a chance to do anything, you never gave _us_ a chance."

Brian looked down at the floor this time, he sighed, knowing it was true, but he just couldn't bring himself to tell Mark the truth about why he broke it off. Even through all the pain, sorrow and jealousy he felt, he couldn't let himself be embarrassed by telling the truth and having Mark look down on him. He wanted to tell him, but he was just too afraid that after he opened up about it, he'd only be rejected.

"Okay." Brian whispered. "I'm sorry, Mark. I guess it was just jealousy and me acting like a five year old. I'm sorry for acting like that."

"Brian, I am not upset or angry for the way we've both been acting, it's just that I want us to be friends. I still care about you and since there isn't anything I can do to change your mind on the matter, I want for us to at least be civil to one another and be able to have a friendship."

Brian sighed, tears dangerously close to forming, "Maybe that's where I screwed up." he said and tore his gaze away from Mark, not wanting to see the reaction Mark would have, "maybe we _shouldn't_ try to be friends. I guess it's obvious that there's stuff I need to deal with first and being around you and being so close to you just isn't working out the way you were hoping it would. So, it'll probably be best that we not try to be friends and hang out and... whatever."

"Why don't you just tell me what _stuff_ you got going on?" Mark asked, feeling like he was being dumped all over again.

"I hope I can get over this _stuff_. But I have to do it on my own." Brian told him, his heartbreaking because he knew how much it must have been hurting Mark, it was obvious he cared about him.

* * *

It was bad, huh? It's okay, I know it was.  
_Review_ though?


	13. Chapter 13

AN: Thanks to those who are still reading! This was a super long chapter for me, so i'm splitting it up.  
The next one will be up before the end of the night, hopefully.  
-FortheloveofWrestling

* * *

Knock.

Mark moaned and groaned as he got out of his comfortable spot on his bed. Adam moaned and moved over to the spot Mark had left. Once again, Mark and Adam shared a bed, this time his. There was nothing behind it. He knew that whatever feelings he had for Adam were purely because of the deep bond and friendship that they shared.

Mark answered the door and with an annoyed tone of voice greeted their early-morning wake up call.

"Can I help you?" Mark looked a little surprised.

"Okay."

"Okay, what?"

"I'm over it."

"You're over it?"

"Yeah, I mean I still have some issues to deal with, but as far as you and I are concerned, I'm sorry for acting the way I did."

"Alright?"

"Sorry for waking you up so early, I just wanted to tell you that."

"I see." Mark replied, still very confused.

Seeing the confusion, Brian further elaborated on his comments. "You were right. There's no reason that we can't be friends. You're a good guy, Mark and you deserved better. So now, I'm hoping that you'll forgive me for my latest mistake and maybe we can build on that. What do you say?"

Mark stood there for a moment, looking at Brian, "Sounds good."

"Great. So... working on the friendship?" Brian said, sticking his hand out to Mark who thought for a second, and then took his hand to shake it.

"Okay, so I guess maybe i'll see you at the arena or... something."

"Yeah, i'll see you there." Mark nodded.

"Okay. Great. Uh.... bye." Brian said as turned around to leave.

"Who was that?" Adam said as Mark closed the door.

"Brian."

"Oh. What did he say?"

"That he's _over_ it?"

"_Over _it?" Adam asked. "Like over... you?"

"Sounds like it." Mark said, trying not to show his emotions. "He said he wants to be friends though."

"Oh, that's good."

"Yeah. That's great." Mark said as he went into the bathroom, slamming the door behind him.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Mark's POV_

_Over it? What the hell did he mean over it? He's over me? The day before, he said he was jealous about me and Adam, and I told him there was nothing going on there, and then the next day, he's over me? What in the world has this kid so messed up that he can't just tell me what's bothering him._

Mark sighed and laid his head back against the seat, thankful that he wasn't being bothered by anyone. It hadn't taken him too long to get over the situation that had happened. He still wondered about it constantly, but he wasn't angry. He figured that this was going to be as close as they might get, and if they could be friends without the drama, that was fine by him. He still wanted to help Brian though and it bothered him that Brian wouldn't tell him anything.

_Hell. What I need to do is scare it out of him. Treat him like the Undertaker would and then he'll spill it._

He turned his head and looked at Brian who was sitting with Matthew, in the seats across from him. Looking at Brian sleeping, Mark smiled.

_Thank goodness this European trip is over. It'll be nice to get home and forget everything for a while. The break will be nice. Get to spend some time with the kids and everything will be fine. No work, no traveling, no hotels and hopefully no thinking of Brian. _Mark chuckled a bit._ Not think of Brian? Yeah right. _

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"What are you laughing about, Deadman?"

Mark looked over at Brian and smiled.

"Nothing."

"So you just smile and laugh by yourself, for no reason?"

"Do you always ask ridiculous questions?"

"Yes."

"I know." Mark chuckled again.

"Really. What were you smiling about?"

"You want to know?"

"Mhm." Brian nodded.  
Mark leaned over across the airplane aisle and whispered to Brian, "you."

Although the plane was a little dark, Mark could make out the color that spread across Brian's cheeks.

"Oh." he smiled. "How boring."

"No, not boring at all." Mark smiled back.

"So what specifically were you thinking about that made you smile?" Brian asked, moving from his seat to the empty one next to Mark. "My rippling muscles? My boyish good looks? My electrifying charisma?"

"D. All of the above."

"You're too funny sometimes, Mark. Really. I want to know."

"I was thinking about you. And..._stuff._"

"Well, what kind of stuff?"

"I wish I knew." Mark said, giving Brian a half smile.

Brian darted his eyes down at the iPod in his hand, trying to ignore the comment that was said.

"Sorry." Mark said, noticing.

"It's okay. I like when you think about me."

After a small silence, Mark tapped Brian on the knee.

"Can I ask you a question?"

Brian nodded.

"When you figure this _thing_ out, will you let me know?"

Brian sat there looking at Mark for a long moment, and then took Mark's hand in his.

"Believe me, Mark. When I do, you'll be the first one to know. I don't want to have to wake up everyday and think 'will Mark and I be on good terms today? Or bad? Is today going to be awkward? Am I going to feel jealous when I see him hug Adam? Or will I be okay with it? Am I going to get butterflies when he touches me? Or am I going to try and run from him?' That's how I feel. Everyday. I don't want that, but it's there. So when it stops and when i'm through having these nagging thoughts that have almost ruined our relationship, you'll hear me at your door, bright and early."

Mark smiled, "I already hear you at my door, bright and early."

"Well than let's hope that one of these days, that'll be the reason why."

"One of these days. Soon, I hope."

"Me too." Brian said, goofy smile pasted to his face.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After Mark's break from the ring, he and Brian were able to really spend some time being friends and not really worrying about the past. Everyone was getting along great, Brian wasn't feeling too jealous and Mark wasn't spending _all_ of his time thinking and worrying about Brian.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Come on, you little weakling, let's get you to the airport." Mark said to Adam.

"Hey, i'm not a weakling, it's just that months of you kicking my ass has taken a toll on me." Adam defended himself, "And you're one to talk about taking a break from the ring."

"Aw, I'm just kidding babe." Mark teased, "you need a break, I know. Not everyone can keep up with me."

"You're so full of it, Mark." Adam laughed.

"Okay, remember to call me be-"

"Before the plane leaves. When we land and when I get home." Adam finished for him.

Mark laughed, "And..."

"Several times a week."

"Right."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Knock._

Looking at clock next to his bed, Mark got up and wondered who could be at the door. He looked through the peep hole and smiled.

"You get your internal clock mixed up, kid?" Mark smiled at Brian. "It ain't even morning yet."

Brian gave him his goofy smile, "haha, funny." Suddenly feeling embarrassed, Brian looked down at his shuffling feet, "I was wondering if maybe you wanted some company tonight."

Mark looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Matthew and his girlfriend are uh, 'hanging out' in our room and I don't really feel like being the third wheel."

"You're too cute, you know that?" Mark laughed and pulled Brian inside the room, "get in here."

"Thanks." Brian said, once they were inside. "So, what are you up to tonight? Now that Adam isn't here to keep you entertained."

"Nothing. I'm so bored. Usually Adam has me doing something to keep busy."

"Mhm. I bet he does." Brian laughed.

"Grow up, Brian."

"Okay, so what are we going to do then?"

"I don't know. Crappy movie?" Mark asked.

"Sounds good."

Mark threw himself onto the couch and turned on the tv.

"Hey. Don't I usually get the remote? And remember you said you'd get up and make room, instead making us act dumb and fall off the couch?"

"Sorry, you break up the relationship, you sit on the uncomfortable chair and watch what I want to watch."

Brian mumbled something Mark barely understood, causing him to laugh.

"Alright, well, at least put it on something decent, will you?"

"Maybe."

"You're such a kid, Mark." Brian teased. As he sat down, he let out an 'Ouch!'.

"What is it?" Mark asked.

"Geez... I just got stabbed by my own keys." Brian chuckled as he tossed the keys from his pocket to the table.

"Wait. Can I see them?"

"What? My keys? Why?"

"Just toss them over here." Mark told him.

With a sigh and a flush of the cheeks, Brian tossed the keys to Mark and then sat down again.

Mark caught them and played with the little picture frame that dangled from the key ring.

"When did you get this?" he asked, smiling.

"Our two jerks bought it." Mark laughed.

"Wish I had a copy." Mark said, tossing the keys back to Brian.

Brian smiled and looked down at the little picture of them on the ride at Universal Studios.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Since Adam was still at home and Matthew and his girlfriend were always 'getting to know eachother better', Brian and Mark were spending more and more time together. Some nights Brian go over to Mark's to hang out or they'd go to dinner with Hunter, Jeff and Paul, and other times they'd go to dinner by themselves. Of course, they also spent time with eachother at the arena as well, and when they went home, it never failed that one would call the other just to see how he was doing. A lot of the time, Mark felt like bringing up the _stuff_ that plagued them both, but always thought against it. He didn't want to ruin anything this time, but the feeling never left him. It didn't take them long to fall back into the routine they had before- hanging out, talking, dinner and capping the evening off with Brian going back to his room, leaving Mark to himself. Of course this time though, they both missed the usual goodnight kiss before he left.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Rocketman!" Mark said, bringing Brian into a huge hug. "Brian, i'm so proud of you! This is it. This is what you've waited so long for."

"I know. It's great. I'm really happy." Brian said, trying to sound as happy as he could.

"Why didn't you tell me though?" Mark questioned, smile never leaving his face.

"I didn't know. Got the message, near the end of the match." Brian said.

"Really? Wow. I told you they'd have to notice you, you're too good not to notice." Mark said, grabbing Brian's hand. "Brian, this is going to be great. I really am very proud of you."

Brian sighed, he wanted to as excited as Mark, but the nagging feeling in the pit of his stomach was starting to be too much.

"How about I treat you to dinner tonight?" Mark asked, as he got his gym bag from the couch.

"Mark, you always treat me to dinner. You never let me pay." Brian joked.

"Well, this time is different." Mark smiled, "you actually deserve it this time."

"Gee... thanks."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After having decided on a room-service dinner and a good movie, Mark and Brian headed to the hotel. After getting showered and putting his stuff away, Brian made his way over to Mark's. Passing Maryse on her way to see Matthew. Her congratulations brought back that weird feeling in his stomach. Brian walked down the hall until he came to Mark's room and noticed the door was just barely open. He smiled, knowing it was left that way for him. He couldn't help that he was still attracted to Mark, he tried so hard not to be, for both of their sakes, but it just wasn't possible. Neither one of them could help it. He walked in peeked into the bedroom to find Mark rummaging through his bag.

"Hoping to catch a glimpse of something?" Mark teased.

"Oh, no. I... sorry, I didn't mean to."

"It's okay, i'm just kidding, Brian." Mark said, to Brian's relief.

After calling for their dinner, Mark sat down across from Brian, smiling.

"What?" he asked.

"Nothing." Mark answered.

"Why are you smiling like that?"

"No reason."

"There has to be a reason. Are you planning on killing me to make sure I don't over throw you for your top spot on Smackdown!?"

Mark laughed, "No, not now at least." he paused, "you just make me smile."

Brian's cheeks flushed, "you're creepy."

"You're cute." Mark continued to tease.

"Stop it."

"Stop what?"

"Making such silly comments."

"I can't help it, you make me want to say silly things."

"Seriously, Mark."

"I'm sorry." Mark laughed. "Maybe it's because I'm still so proud of you."

"Thanks, but it's no big deal."

"Yes, it is, Brian. This Scramble match is going to be huge for you."

* * *

Hope to see some reviews before I post the next one! *hint hint*


	14. Chapter 14

AN: Part 2. No reviews yet, though. Oh well. Enjoy!  
-FortheloveofWrestling

* * *

They both took a seat at the table and with a great sigh, Brian started to speak.

"Wait." Mark interrupted him. "This is going to make me sound pretty dumb after all the hounding I did, but maybe i'm not the person you need to talk to. Maybe you're right and I can't help you."

Brian took Mark's hand in his and said to him, "Mark, you're the only one I want to help me."

Mark gave him a small smile and nodded, urging Brian to continue.

"Um, pretty much everything I said before was either BS or a cover. I know that you would never do anything like that; I know that you wouldn't hurt me like that. This _thing, _this _stuff_ that's been hanging over me, hanging over both of us, is stuff going way back. When I first started training with Shawn." Brian took a moment to swallow his nerves down and then continued, "Uh, one day after training, some of us went out to dinner and Shawn showed up and decided to join us. I guess we got a little drunk and there was some flirting going on between us and of course everyone noticed and they teased me about it. I don't want to sound like i'm blaming Shawn for anything, because I'm not, but I think after some of the teasing, Shawn took notice of the guys who were taking everything seriously and those who weren't and he started focusing a little more on us who did take it seriously. And that didn't help the teasing, it got really bad. There were a few times when I said that I was injured and didn't go show up and more than a few times that I wanted to give up all together, thankfully though, I had Paul and Lance to talk me out of it." Sitting there, listening to Brian talk, Mark felt his heart ache for the kid. _No wonder he was so damned terrified, _he thought. "Some guy even tried hitting on me and stuff, thinking I was easy and that it would prove something to the others, then the next week Lance 'accidentally' broke his arm while they were in the ring," Brian smiled, and so did Mark, but Brian's quickly faded. "I hated being the butt of their jokes, and the jokes that they were making were pretty crude. I hated that I let it get to me and needed Paul and Lance to watch over me all the time. I hate that i'm here now, with a great opportunity in front of me and I _still_ can't get over what happened, and most importantly, I hate that the fear I have is keeping me away from you. I know that it might not seem like this was worth all the drama I put you through, but you have to try and understand how hard it was for me."

Brian moved off of the chair, and knelt in front of Mark, "I'm so sorry that I didn't tell you before, but I thought that if I did, you'd think that maybe I _was_ trying to use you like that. I'm so sorry. I don't want this to hurt anymore, but it does, all the time. I just want to let it go and be able to be with you without that feeling in my stomach. When we were together, it wasn't because I thought I could get a push out of it. I don't want the push. I want you, Mark."

"Brian, I do understand. I know that this must have been hard for you, and if I would have known, then I might have gone about things differently; easier. But Brian, I don't want you to hold on to those fears. You gotta forget about them."

Brian moved up and locked his lips with Mark's. He held Mark's face and continued to kiss him. Mark could feel Brian's velvety tongue glide across his lips and beg for entrance. As both tongues explored and again became familiar with eachother, Brian's hands reached Mark's forearms and they both stood up. Mark's hands roamed freely over Brian's sides and rested on his hips and Brian's mouth moved from Mark's mouth to his neck. He kissed, nipped and sucked on the flesh of Mark's throat, while Mark balled Brian's shirt in his fist. "Wait." he breathed. "I said wait, Brian." he whispered again. Brian looked at him, "Brian. Is this. What you want?" he asked breathlessly. Brian pulled back a little and looked up at Mark, "Mark, I want this. I want you. I need you." With that, Mark leaned down and caught Brian's lips, his mouth already open and waiting. Brian moved his hands from Mark's back to his shoulders, from his arms down his chest and finally rested at the hem of his shirt. After a couple of tugs, Mark broke the kiss only long enough to remove his shirt and then looked at Brian who had his goofy smile on his face. Mark tossed the shirt to chair and as he kissed Brian again, he pushed him into the bedroom.

Standing at the foot of the bed, Mark kicked off his shoes and Brian did the same, then he gently pushed Brian down and moved over him, never parting their lips. Needing air, Brian broke the kiss and scooted himself to the head of the bed and Mark crawled over to him. Brian wrapped his arms around Mark's neck and shoulders, while his lips made their way from his throat to the where his neck and shoulders met. He sucked gently on the skin, wanting to leave a mark. Mark hissed at the small bite Brian had taken, and then let out a soft moan as he soothed it with his tongue.

Mark took hold of Brian's hand which was snaking down the front of his body, and pinned it over his head. He moved so that one knee rested on either side of Brian. Brian sat up a little and pulled off his own shirt, tossing it to the side. Mark pushed him down again and this time it was his lips on Brian's throat. Mark chuckled as Brian's hips slowly starting bucking against him, ignoring his own growing erection, Mark moved to the spot where Brian had left a mark on him. He too slowly sucked on the flesh and nipped and bit, making Brian moan and hiss the way he had. He left a trail of kisses down to the middle of Brian's chest and placed hand there, feeling the beat under his hand, he moved back up to Brian's mouth and placed a soft kiss there. He pulled away and smiled, Brian had his eyes closed and had his hand over Mark's on his chest.

Mark moved down and continued to place kisses over Brian's chest while running the tips of his fingers over his ribs. Brian gasped when he felt Mark's warm mouth on his nipple. Mark ran his tongue over it as it hardened; Mark moved across, looking up and Brian who was watching him intently, and did the same to the other. Keeping his hands on Brian's hips, to keep him from bucking up into his own hardness, Mark trailed his tongue down Brian's sides and ribs, leaving small kisses and bite marks. Mark moved his roaming hands to the buckle of Brian's jeans. He undid the button and zipper, Brian arched his hips up so that Mark could slide them off, but Mark shook his head and traveled back up Brian's body. He placed several kisses along Brian's neck and jawline until he came to his ear and then whispered, "slow," making Brian shiver.

Brian turned his head and took Mark's lips with his, plunging his tongue into the warmth of Mark's mouth. When they parted, Mark went back to his previous position and just barely pulled down the jeans and the waist band of the boxers to reveal his pelvic area. Mark looked up and Brian was running his own hand across chest and abdomen, still watching Mark's every move. Brian threw his head back as Mark's mouth placed kisses on him and sucked on the sensitive area. Mark sucked and licked at the area until he was sure he had left his mark and then did the same to the other side, as he did so, all he could hear was Brian's wonderful moans and gasps for air.

"Mark, please." he heard Brian say. "Please." he heard him repeat. "Please what?" Mark asked before running his tongue under Brian's naval and then blowing his breathe across the area, making Brian chuckle. "Touch me." he said, moving his hands to Mark's hair. "I am." Mark teased, "where do you want me to touch you?" Brian smiled as Mark continued to leave kisses and bites across his lower abdomen. "Please." he said. "I will, but you gotta tell me where, Brian." Mark moved so the he was laying at Brian's side, still lavishing his abdomen and now running his hand across Brian's chest. Brian opened his eyes, and smiled, he grabbed Mark's hand and moved it down. "Here." he said. "Ooh. Here?" Mark said with a laugh, only just barely running his hand over Brian's stiff and pulsing erection, Brian nodded, eyes closed again.

Mark rubbed his palm across Brian's jean-clad member and heard Brian take a deep breathe, trying to steady his own hips. "This okay?" Mark asked, loving the soft sounds that came from Brian, who was on some totally new level of sensations. Brian groaned at Mark's teasing and then, before Mark could stop him, Brian was on top, straddling him, lazily grinding his hips into Mark, who was more than aroused, on the verge of painful arousal. When Brian started to undo Mark's jeans, with all his sanity, Mark grabbed his wrists and stopped him. As much as he would have loved to feel the same things on his body, Mark knew that this had to be about Brian. Brian was trusting him and handed himself over to Mark, in hopes that he wouldn't hurt him. And he wouldn't, but he wanted to make sure that Brian knew it.

"Take off your jeans, Brian." Mark said, a bit hazy from the sensations Brian was giving him with his gyrating hips. Brian grinned and moved off of the bed, hooking his fingers in the waist of his pants and making sure Mark was watching him. He took them off, balled them up and threw them onto the table in the corner of the room. Then he looked up at Mark, making sure his attention was still on him. He made a quick move and pulled his hair back from his face and then finally brought his hands down to the waist band of his boxer-briefs. He pulled them down slightly and looked up at Mark, who was struggling to keep his hands at his sides, and then he continued to pull them off completely, achingly slow for Mark. Suddenly embarrassed, Brian could feel his body grow red under Mark's green stare and felt himself start to fidget a little. Mark let out a chuckle, "come here, Rocketman."

Brian smiled and joined Mark on the bed, he laid down and let Mark take over. Mark, once again, straddled Brian's waist, causing him to gasp when he felt the rough texture touch his aching body. Mark smiled and moved his way down. Mark moved his hands across Brian's hips with feather-light touches and did the same to his thighs and the inside of his legs, just as his eyes had closed and began moaning, his body arched off the bed and his eyes were wide as he watched Mark sucked on just the very tip of his cock. Brian gasped for air again as Mark continued further down, apply pressure to his body. Brian entangled his hands in Mark's hair as he moaned and squirmed underneath him. Mark let out a small chuckle that sent vibrations through Brian and he knew that he wasn't going to last very long. Mark placed a hand at the very base to urge Brian on to completion as he moved his mouth back to the very tip and running his tongue over it before continuing to add pressure on it. He moved down lower and raked his teeth back up. That last sensation made Brian buck up against Mark's mouth, "Ooh. Mmm. So good." Brian moaned, "Maark...I'm...Ooh." was all that he managed to say before he came into Mark's mouth. Mark gave a few last pumps and then moved up his body, his own erection, starting to ache more and more. He willed himself not to touch it or to even think about it.

Brian opened his eyes, after letting his breathing return to normal, he looked at Mark and let his lips form into a huge grin; an open invitation to Mark, which he took. Brian looked at Mark with a wicked grin on his face and rubbed his leg up against Mark's crotch. "Shit." Mark moaned, the small movement causing him to involuntary buck his hips against Brian reminded him that he was going to need to feel his own release, soon. Mark moved so that he resting against the backboard of the bed and Brian snaked his hand across Mark's abdomen and then lower to cup the bulge of his jeans. Mark was already squirming underneath the touch. He could feel his hips wanting to thrust up into Brian's hand. This time, Brian let out a small laugh as it was his turn to tease. He rubbed his palm against the material and then looked up at Mark. "What do you want?" Brian asked, the answer more than obvious to him already. With his eyes closed, Mark smiled, understanding the game Brian was playing. "I'll take anything at this point." he said before moaning as he felt Brian straddle his waist. Brian did the same as before and lazily rolled his hips over Mark's. "Keep that up and this is going to be over really soon." he heard Mark say through the moans. He stopped, "well, wouldn't want that." he said. He reached down and undid Mark's button and zipper, Mark let out a sigh at the ease of pressure on his painfully hard cock.

Brian moved down Mark's body and removed the rest of his clothing. After taking notice of Mark's size, he grew a little nervous at what would happen next. He crawled back up Mark's legs and torso and sat with his hardening member pressed up against Mark's body and his lips on Mark. Mark moved his hand between them and lightly ran his fingers up and down Brian's cock, making him moan and wiggle on top of him. Brian started to roll his hips again, and Mark leaned over and whispered in his ear, "what do you want?" Brian looked at Mark, but Mark didn't see the glazed eyes of lust, only the trust and fear, with something more. Brian kissed Mark and then moved to his ear, "I want you to make me forget; make me let go. Make me stop hurting." He pulled back and saw into Mark's eyes. He knew that he could trust Mark with more than just his body, and that this would just make it certain. Mark nodded, "I don't want you to hurt, I want to make you forget and let go." he said with a kiss.

Mark moved his lips to Brian's shoulder and moved his hands to run across Brian's chest. "Wait, Mark. Do you have-" Brian said, before he was told to go over to Mark's bag. Brian came back and placed the items on the bed and resumed his position on top of Mark. "What do you carry these for?" Brian laughed. "No time for jokes now, Rocketman." Mark said as he opened the cap and spread the cool gel onto his fingers. He moved his arm around Brian and looked at him, "you ready?" Brian nodded. Mark placed one finger just at the entrance of Brian's body and then with a kiss, plunged it in, making Brian moan against his mouth. After letting his body become accustomed to the feel of his fingers, Mark added a second and third before Brian was moaning and begging for Mark to finish.

Mark removed his digits and then placed the condom on himself. He positioned it behind Brian and with a whisper and kiss, entered Brian's body. The new feeling took the breathe from both men and they stayed still for a minute. Finally, Brian couldn't take it and started to slowly rock his hips against Mark. "Oh, shit." he said, multiple sensations flowing through his body, "Ooh," he moaned as he felt Mark's member hit his spot. "Mm." Mark smiled, "so tight. Feels perfect." Brian started moving up and down on Mark's cock, feeling he wouldn't last much longer. Mark knew he wouldn't last long either, the feel of Brian's warm, tightness around him, along with Brian's moans and nails digging into his shoulders was enough to bring his to the brink, he was working on sheer willpower to keep from spoiling the moment. Mark leaned forward and sucked on his throat and grabbed onto Brian's hips, holding him steady. Feeling his release coming, Brian tore one hand out of Mark's shoulder and onto his throbbing cock. Brian leaned forward, pushing Mark against the headboard and urged for Mark to meet his thrusts, which he did. Mark was meeting Brian's body as he came crashing down on him. Mark reached up with one hand and pushed the sweat drenched hair out of Brian's face so that he could look into his eyes when he came. On the verge, Brian leaned in close to Mark, "please, Mark, make me forget. Love me and make me forget." With Brian's pleads and cries, Mark thrust harder and deeper and after another few moments, they both came, simultaneously crying eachother's name.

When they were able to regain their breathing and strength, Brian rolled off of Mark and curled up next to him. Mark scooted down and let Brian rest his head on his chest. "Mark?" "Hm?" "Thank you for not thinking the worst of me." Brian, looking up at Mark. Mark looked at him, "Why would I think that? I love everything about you." Mark said, making Brian blush and smile. "Especially that goofy little smile." "So, what's going to happen now?" Brian asked and then letting a yawn escape him. "We sleep. I'm exhausted and you sound like you are too." Mark replied looking down at an already sleeping Brian.

Mark woke up a couple of hours later and smiled when he saw Brian curled up next to him. He quietly moved so that he wouldn't wake Brian up. He moved around the bed and picked up his discarded boxer-briefs and put them on. He walked into the living room and turned out the lights. He walked back into the bedroom and made sure Brian was still asleep before he went into the bathroom. When he came out, he saw Brian, with his boxer-briefs on, standing by the table where he had tossed his pants. He turned around and gave Mark a smile, who gave him a small sad one back. Mark walked over to the bed and sat with his back to Brian. _He's leaving, even after tonight, he can't stay with me. _Mark thought to himself.

Sighing, he spoke up, "Do you want me to walk you back?"

"Why? Trying to get rid of me?" Brian asked, walking over to him.

Mark sat up straight and looked up at him, "I thought maybe you were going to want to leave."

"Not tonight, not anymore." Brian smiled.

Mark sighed out of relief and put his hands on Brian's hips and placed a kiss on his abdomen.

"Good, I don't want you to leave."

With that, Mark laid back and brought Brian down with him. Brian snuggled close to Mark, his head on Mark's chest and arm and leg wrapped around him. Mark brought the blanket over them and rested one arm around Brian's shoulders where he could play with a strand of hair and the other he laced with the one Brian was resting on his stomach.

"I think I love you, Mark." Brian said, biting his lip, afraid of what Mark might say.

Mark just chuckled and placed a kiss on Brian's lips.

"Well, I _do_ love you, so let me know when you decide, Rocketman."

"Okay." Brian chuckled and paused for a moment.

"Mark?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

Mark laughed, "Go to sleep, Rocketman."

* * *

That's it. That's the end, I guess.  
How'd I do, overall?  
THANKS to ALL of those who REVIEWED and ADDED! I truely appreciate it!


End file.
